Norwest launches $3 Bn fund; will continue to invest bigger deals in India

Norwest Venture Partners, which has invested in companies such as Swiggy and Mensa Brands, has closed a global $3 billion fund and will continue to focus on early-to-late-stage deals albeit at a higher ticket size specially in India.

"India has come of age in terms of technology investing and we are now where China was about 8-9 years ago. China went on create multi-trillion market cap in the new-age economy. Of course the Indian GDP per capita is lower, but in the next 8-10 years we will produce some very large companies from India. We are also seeing that the quality of founders in the ecosystem has become fantastic. The inflection point in the market and quality of founders are going to create very large outcomes for Indian companies and founders," Niren Shah, managing director and head of India at Norwest, told reporters

"We are finding that the ticket size of deals on average are also trending upwards and in line with that we are continuing to expect higher ticket sizes of investments in India," he added.

In India, besides Swiggy and Mensa Brands, the fund has invested in marquee companies such as OfBusiness, Five Star Finance, Pepperfry, S K Finance, Amagi Media, Xpressbees Logisitics and Duroflex.

NVP XVI, the new fund, brings the firm's total capital under management to $12.5 billion. Norwest had last raised Norwest Venture Partners XV, LP, a $2 billion fund in 2019. Since its last fund closed, it has made new investments in more than 60 companies.

Since its inception, Norwest has invested in more than 650 companies and currently partners with more than 200 companies in its venture and growth equity portfolio.

In India, besides Swiggy and Mensa Brands, the fund has invested in marquee companies such as OfBusiness, Five Star Finance, Pepperfry, S K Finance, Amagi Media, Xpressbees Logisitics and Duroflex. It has made successful exits from portfolio firms such as Persistent Systems, RBL Bank, Snowman Logistics, Yatra, Chola Finance and Thyrocare, when they went public.