Venture Catalysts forays into 11 new cities to boost investor network

Mumbai headquartered integrated incubator Venture Catalysts said it has set up operations in 11 new cities to strengthen its angel investor network.

With the addition of Bengaluru, Bhopal, twin cities Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, Bilaspur, Chennai, Indore, Jaipur, Navi Mumbai, Visakhapatnam, Pune and Goa, the company currently has a presence in 35 Indian cities, which includes both large metros and smaller towns.

The platform connects high profile investors and stakeholders with promising local startups to enable resource allocation and funding. The firm looks to create a network of 10,000 angel investors across 100 startup cities by 2021, Venture Catalysts said in a statement.

“We received 3,000+ registrations for our virtual launch in 11 cities, which indicates the growing cognizance of Venture Catalysts. We also plan to expand our presence into 15 more cities in the coming months,” president and co-founder Apoorva Ranjan Sharma said. 

According to the company, over 40% of its 1,100-strong investor base is from tier-3 and tier-3 towns. Some of top portfolio startups from tier-2 cities are IGP, Beardo, Rare Planet and Chai Break.

The company also has an international presence, with offices in the UK, Middle East, north Africa and the US.

Venture Catalysts, which claims to be India’s first integrated incubator, was set up in 2016 by Sharma, Anil Jain, Anuj Golecha and Gaurav Jain. It typically invests $250,000 to $1.5 million in startups and also offers mentorship and networking guidance. 

It has backed 14 startups since January, investing between $500,000 and $2 million. It has recently funded AR/VR platform Cusmat, industrial robotics startup Peppermint, omnichannel electronics retail platform GabbarDeals,  refreshment marketplace F5, job search platform MyKaam, fintech HomeCapital and sports engagement platform Rooter.