To invest in 50 firms over the next 18 months, First Cheque, an early-stage venture capital firm, has completed its second fund at 380 million rupees (about $4.8 million).
With a regular procedure of investing US $100,000 at US $2 million valuations, the India-based company would concentrate on first-time entrepreneurs in the nation.
By making pre-seed investments, First Cheque seeks to be the earliest source of funding for entrepreneurs. Aiming to shorten the capital deployment process to less than 30 days from the first conversations, it also has a fund and adopts a sector-neutral strategy.
First Cheque’s total assets under management have increased to US $11.3 million with the closure of this second fund. With more than 100 firms it had backed over the previous three years, its inaugural fund used to function as an AngelList syndicate. Fashinza, a producer of clothing, Wint Wealth, and Bellatrix Aerospace, a space technology company, are a few of the businesses it has sponsored.
According to First Cheque’s investment head, Prateek Agarwal, the company seeks to help ambitious creators by concentrating on what it refers to as “founder-market fit” rather than things like a founder’s educational background, and prior founding experience, or endorsement from other VC firms.
“We believe that India needs more seed-stage institutional capital and mentorship, which we aim to provide via our founder community, dedicated program, and a network of seasoned investors and venture partners,” he added.
