NuVentures, an angel fund whose promoters have invested in companies such as MuSigma in their individual capacities and Myntra through the fund they were associated with, is close to investing in Ampere, makers of electric two wheelers.  Promoted by Venk Krishnan and T Subbarao, NuVentures has already invested in ventures as diverse as Curejoy, Zansaar, Capricoast, Nomadly and ScripBox.   Krishnan told BusinessLine that NuVentures usually looks at niche companies to invest in.

For example, Curejoy is an alternative healthcare and wellness company while Nomadly is a travel company which specialises in customised weekend holiday packages. Zansaar is a home essential venture, Capricoast is a platform to buy modular kitchens and ScripBox offers personalised financial investments into mutual funds.   “We usually look at ideas and the people involved in the project and their track record before we invest in their companies,” Krishnan who is also the CEO and founder of NuWare Technologies said.  He said NuVentures which was started eight months ago expects to have a portfolio of about 15 companies soon.  

Subbarao said once NuVentures invests in a company, it takes it upto the institutional round. Typically, the funding ranges between $200,000 to $250,000 while the stake in the invested company ranges from single digits to upto 30 per cent.  The total fund size at present is about $2.5 million.  

NuVentures are also looking at incubating a few companies apart from investing in others as well. “There is always an opportunity for other angel investors to come together on the same platform and invest jointly,” Subbarao pointed out. He said whenever NuVentures in a company, it does a lot of handholding apart from linking the promoters to the huge network that the founders have. “We just don’t invest and sit back but actually roll up our sleeves to help the company to scale up operations, help them in hiring the right talent as well as benchmark their business plans with the best,” he said. 

Subbarao who was earlier a partner with Actis, a UK-based equity fund, said a correction in the e-commerce space will happen sooner than expected and it will become harder for the players in this space to get funding. “So, those who have strong fundamentals and do not play the valuation game will eventually survive,” he said. 

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