Sierra Ventures, a Silicon Valley venture firm, has made a direct investment in the online travel portal, MakeMyTrip.com, and a strategic investment in a seed stage venture capital fund, Seedfund
Sierra Ventures, a US$1.5 billion, Silicon Valley based venture capital firm, has made a direct investment in MakeMyTrip.com, India’s popular online travel portal, and a strategic investment in a seed stage venture capital fund, Seedfund.
On the MakeMyTrip.com investment, Tim Guleri, managing director, Sierra Ventures, says, “Online travel is among the largest consumer Internet markets in India and we really feel MakeMyTrip.com is a dominant player here.”
Deep Kalra, founder and CEO, MakeMyTrip.com, says, “Sierra Ventures has a strong understanding of the consumer Internet space in India and the company’s international presence will significantly benefit MakeMyTrip.com, as we plough ahead with our ambitious plans.”
Seedfund is a seed stage fund that will target startups in India that focus on the consumer media, Internet, mobile and retail sectors. The fund is managed by a team with an early-stage track record in India, in both operational and investment capacities. Seedfund’s managing partners include Pravin Gandhi and Bharati Jacob (both formerly with Infinity Venture Fund) and Mahesh Murthy, a serial entrepreneur responsible for founding and building publicly listed technology companies in India.
“The team at Seedfund has both the requisite regional venture capital experience as well as the expertise of personally building some of the most successful startup companies in the country,” says Vispi Daver, principal at Sierra Ventures. “Our relationship with Seedfund complements our direct investment strategy in India.”
Founded in 1982, Sierra Ventures has an established focus on India at present. According to Pravin Gandhi, managing partner, Seedfund, “Sierra Ventures’ 24 year history is a testament to its ability to consistently build successful companies. A financial relationship with a major Silicon Valley venture firm was a required inclusion in our capital structure.”
Sierra Ventures has been active in India for the last few years. The firm has made direct investments in companies based entirely in India and serving local markets, as well as in companies with an Indian operational presence serving global markets. Its portfolio, apart from the two companies mentioned here, includes Astra Business Services, the BPO company focused on secondary debt collection, uGenie, a consumer Internet company focused on next generation online shopping, Approva, an enterprise software company focused on business intelligence, Razorsight, a management software company focused on analysis of invoice data, and Everest Software, a business management solutions company for small enterprises.
Sierra’s interests in India include early and development stage companies in consumer Internet, mobile and enterprise software and services.
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