Growth-stage investor Elev8 Venture Partners has completed the final close of its maiden fund at ₹1,400 crore ($160 million). The firm trimmed its initial $200 million target by 20 percent to ease return pressure and build flexibility through co-investments from its limited partners (LPs). By adopting this strategy, the Bengaluru-based fund aims to channel larger capital inflows into its portfolio companies without overstretching its own fund size.
Strategic Rationale Behind a Smaller Fund
Elev8 initially announced a $200 million target when it launched the fund in September 2022. However, the management recalibrated the target corpus to $160 million. Managing Partner Navin Honagudi explained that the firm chose to right-size the fund rather than burden itself with the challenge of chasing oversized returns. By leaning on LPs for co-investments, Elev8 can keep ticket sizes large while protecting fund performance metrics.
This strategy aligns with a broader trend among Indian venture funds that recognize the growing appetite among global and domestic LPs to co-invest. Institutional investors, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals (HNIs) now prefer blended models where their involvement extends beyond fund commitments.
Deployment So Far: Five Portfolio Bets
Elev8 has already deployed one-third of its maiden corpus across five high-growth startups. Each deal ranged between $8 million and $14 million, and the portfolio reflects the firm’s emphasis on fintech, B2B platforms, SaaS, and consumer internet.
- Astrotalk: An astrology and spiritual guidance platform that taps into India’s massive religious and cultural market.
- IDfy: A leading identity verification company solving the critical challenge of digital trust.
- Smallcase: A retail investment platform that allows individuals to build theme-based equity portfolios.
- Porter: A logistics player disrupting urban freight movement and last-mile delivery.
- Snapmint: A consumer lending and “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) company that targets India’s growing middle class.
These five bets reflect Elev8’s thesis: fund scalable platforms that combine profitability with strong growth. The firm has kept its focus on companies already demonstrating strong unit economics, rather than chasing vanity metrics.
Pipeline for 2025–2027
Elev8 plans to invest in three more startups before the end of this year. In 2026, it expects to back another five companies. With an average cheque size of $12–15 million, the fund intends to fully deploy its capital by late 2026 or mid-2027.
Honagudi stressed that India currently offers a deep pipeline of investment-ready companies. The firm typically starts evaluating startups that have already crossed $15 million in annual revenue, ensuring they operate at a level of maturity and scalability suitable for growth-stage investment.
Anchors and LP Base
The maiden fund received strong support from a balanced mix of domestic and international LPs. Its anchor, KB Investment, part of South Korea’s financial giant KB Holdings, contributed around 20 percent of the total corpus.
Other LPs include Indian family offices, global institutional investors, and wealthy individuals. The firm’s incubation support came from Venture Catalysts, which has played a central role in shaping Elev8’s ecosystem access and deal pipeline.
This diverse LP base offers Elev8 the flexibility to co-invest alongside its fund, ensuring that portfolio companies can access larger pools of capital as they scale.
Sectoral Priorities
Elev8’s first fund revolves around four core themes:
- Fintech: The firm focuses on infrastructure plays and consumer internet models arising from lending businesses. Snapmint reflects this thesis.
- Software-as-a-Service (SaaS): Elev8 scouts for scalable SaaS solutions built in India but targeting global markets.
- Business-to-Business (B2B) Platforms: Firms that digitize or streamline legacy supply chains and logistics find Elev8’s interest. Porter represents this bet.
- Consumer Brands: Direct-to-consumer (D2C) and marketplace models that tap into India’s consumer boom, like Astrotalk, remain a key vertical.
In each vertical, Elev8 looks for companies with both strong topline growth and sustainable profitability. The firm avoids hype-driven sectors that lack proven monetization models.
Approach to Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) plays a role in Elev8’s thesis, but not as a standalone sector. Honagudi noted that all portfolio companies already use AI tools to cut costs, improve customer engagement, and boost retention.
However, Elev8 does not view AI itself as a separate bet. India has not yet produced standalone AI firms at scale, particularly those building large language model (LLM)-driven businesses with revenues beyond $5–10 million. Until that market matures, Elev8 prefers companies that integrate AI into core operations rather than companies whose sole offering revolves around AI.
Deployment Strategy: First Cheques and Follow-Ons
Elev8 has reserved 70–75 percent of its capital for first cheques. The remaining funds will go toward follow-on rounds in existing portfolio companies. This approach ensures Elev8 can double down on winners while still diversifying its exposure across a targeted number of bets.
The firm believes that capital discipline remains critical in India’s venture capital market. Too much money chasing too few deals often leads to inflated valuations and weak returns. Elev8’s strategy attempts to correct this by writing meaningful cheques but ensuring valuation discipline.
Portfolio Performance Expectations
According to Elev8, its portfolio companies currently grow at 30 percent annually while maintaining profitability. This balance between growth and profit, Honagudi argued, will shape India’s next generation of market leaders.
The emphasis on profitability also reflects a market shift. After years of funding hypergrowth at any cost, Indian VCs and founders now prioritize cash flows and margins. Elev8 has aligned its thesis with this shift, focusing on companies with solid fundamentals.
Timing of the Fund Close
Elev8’s final close comes as Indian venture capital fundraising shows clear signs of revival. In 2025 alone, VCs have already raised over $3.2 billion, surpassing the $2.7 billion raised in all of 2024.
This renewed momentum follows a difficult fundraising environment in 2023 and early 2024, when global economic uncertainty slowed commitments. With interest rates stabilizing and LP optimism returning, India once again features prominently in global venture allocation strategies.
Elev8’s successful fund close reflects this confidence. Investors believe India’s consumption-driven growth, rising digitization, and expanding middle class create fertile ground for scalable startups.
Why Elev8 Stands Out
Several factors differentiate Elev8’s approach in a crowded venture ecosystem:
- Right-Sizing the Fund: Instead of chasing a larger corpus, Elev8 optimized for performance and flexibility.
- Balanced LP Base: Its even split between domestic and global investors ensures resilience and access to diverse co-investment pools.
- Growth-Stage Focus: Unlike early-stage funds chasing risky bets, Elev8 targets proven companies ready to scale.
- Profitability Lens: The firm insists on backing companies with sustainable business models, not just growth stories.
- Selective AI Approach: Elev8 integrates AI as an operational enhancer rather than a standalone hype-driven sector.
Outlook
Elev8 Venture Partners has entered India’s growth-stage venture capital market at an opportune moment. With a ₹1,400 crore fund, a disciplined deployment strategy, and a portfolio already featuring five promising companies, the firm has positioned itself as a serious player.
Its focus on profitability, scalable consumer platforms, and B2B innovations aligns with India’s evolving venture capital narrative. If Elev8’s portfolio maintains its current growth trajectory, the firm will likely establish itself as a leading force in shaping India’s next generation of unicorns.
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