B8 Fund-I marks company’s first dedicated late-stage investment vehicle
Info Edge has launched B8 Fund-I, a new growth-stage investment vehicle with a capital commitment of Rs 250 crore. The fund may also raise capital from external sponsors, potentially taking the total corpus beyond the initial commitment. This marks Info Edge’s first dedicated fund focused exclusively on later-stage companies, expanding its long-standing startup investment strategy beyond early-stage bets.
Expanding venture platform beyond early-stage investments
Info Edge currently operates four early-stage investment platforms, including Info Edge Ventures, which has raised Rs 2,300 crore across three funds; Capital 2B with a Rs 280 crore corpus; Redstart Labs focused on AI-led startups; and direct balance sheet investments. Through these vehicles, the company has backed startups such as Gnani AI, Ixigo, Shiprocket, Zingbus, and Truemeds. It also made early investments in Zomato and Policybazaar through its balance sheet.
Focus on growth-stage, tech-enabled Indian companies
Registered with SEBI as a Category II Alternative Investment Fund, B8 Fund-I will focus on backing growth-stage, technology-enabled businesses in India or those primarily focused on the Indian market. The fund will have a tenure of eight years from its first closing, reflecting a long-term capital deployment strategy aimed at supporting scale-stage companies.
Strengthening institutional startup investing strategy
In May last year, Info Edge received shareholder approval to invest up to Rs 1,000 crore in Info Edge Ventures’ third fund as part of its broader plan to institutionalise startup investing. The Info Edge Ventures platform operates in a 50:50 partnership with Temasek. For the quarter ended December 31, Info Edge reported operating revenue of Rs 819 crore and a 10 percent year-on-year rise in net profit to Rs 317 crore, underscoring strong financial performance alongside its expanding investment footprint.
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