Kettleborough VC Launches Rs 80 Crore Fund II for 'Dhandha-First' Startups
Kettleborough VC, led by Nisarg Shah, has launched its second fund with a target corpus of Rs 80 crore. The fund, which prefers 'Dhandha-first' businesses in financial services, full-stack commerce, and vertical SaaS, has already raised Rs 35 crore in its first close.
Kettleborough VC focuses on inception-stage investing, backing founders at 'the last straw moment' when lived experience and market familiarity converge. Fund II will write initial seed cheques between $300,000 and $500,000 (Rs 2.5 crore to Rs 4.2 crore) and allocate follow-on capital to promising companies. The firm aims to back about 10 companies with Fund II that align with its sharp thesis of founder-market fit at inception.
The firm expects to complete deployment of Fund I this quarter and has begun preparing for its first set of exits. Fund I backed 12 startups, with the firm providing the first institutional cheque to nine of them. Several of these startups have raised follow-on rounds from marquee institutional investors.
Kettleborough VC's Fund II, with a target corpus of Rs 80 crore, is set to continue the firm's strategy of supporting deeply experienced founders at the inception stage. With Rs 35 crore already raised in the first close, the fund is poised to back around 10 companies that fit its 'founder-market fit' thesis.
