Venture debt firm Stride Ventures leads fresh funding in Pocket Aces

Digital entertainment startup Pocket Aces Pictures Pvt. Ltd has raised Rs 17 crore ($2.32 million) in a funding round led by venture debt firm Stride Ventures.

Stride said in a statement on Wednesday that the venture debt firm will be a strategic partner of Pocket Aces’ growth journey with this investment.

Pocket Aces will use the funds to boost its content output and invest in new content formats and distribution channels, it added.

The digital entertainment startup was founded by Anirudh Pandita, Aditi Shrivastava and Ashwin Suresh in 2013.  

It conceptualises, creates and distributes written and video content including web series through its social media and online channels – Dice Media, FilterCopy and Gobble. The startup also operates Loco, a game streaming and esports app. Last year, it launched its talent management division Clout.

Previously in July 2019, Pocket Aces had raised Rs 100 crore from Sequoia Capital India, DSP Group and 3one4 Capital, among others, as part of its Series B funding round.

Competitors of Pocket Aces’ brands include over-the-top (OTT) platform The Viral Fever and esports platform Mobile Premier League.

Stride Ventures

Stride Ventures, founded by Ishpreet Gandhi, is one of the newest entrants in India’s nascent venture debt market.

The venture debt firm had marked the first close of its debut fund in December 2019. Since then the fund has been actively investing even during the lockdown imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic, having made at least a dozen bets so far.

Its other recent bets include make-up brand SUGAR Cosmetics and robotics startup Miko. Its other portfolio companies include an Internet of Things (IoT) firm in the dairy segment Stellapps, interior design startup HomeLane, B2B marketplace Bulk MRO and used two-wheeler marketplace CredR.

Stride planned to have a portfolio of 20-22 companies by the end of March this year, Gandhi had told VCCircle.