Sandesha Jaitapkar, COO, Artha Group
For Artha India Ventures, venture capital is as much about execution as funding. Having backed over 130 startups, the firm believes that operational discipline often determines the success of an early-stage company.“We’ve always had a mindset of investing before markets get ready for a sector. Understanding the pulse early has been a big part of how we’ve built our portfolio,” says Sandesha Jaitapkar, COO, Artha Group.Starting off with investments in renewable energy assets, the firm later branched into venture capital and alternative investment strategies. Its ₹220-crore Artha Venture Fund I is fully invested, while the ₹450-crore Artha Select Fund is being deployed currently. Its Quest Fund and Prime Fund are in the works.Artha has backed Agnikul, Biryani by Kilo (exited), LenDenClub, Rapido, Oyo (exited), Stay Vista, and Beardo (exited).Edited excerpts:
Artha started with renewable energy investments. How has the thesis evolved?
Energy remains an important focus area for us, although it is now managed through a different structure within the group. We also run a fixed-income model where we acquire operating assets that generate recurring cash flows.We continue to look at sectors where we believe the market has not fully appreciated the opportunity yet. Historically, we’ve invested in themes before they became mainstream, and that remains unchanged.
