Andreessen Horowitz Commits $500M for Indian Startups: Report

The move comes as more VCs target India’s growing startup ecosystem.

AccessTimeIconMay 3, 2022 at 3:45 a.m. UTC
Updated May 11, 2023 at 6:57 p.m. UTC
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Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), one of the dominant forces in the venture capital industry, is planning to invest $500 million in India's growing startup ecosystem, according to a report from TechCrunch citing people familiar with the matter.

  • India, with its large, web-savvy population, has seen a surge in interest from investors in its startups.
  • VCs invested $23.5 billion in Indian startups in 2021, according to PitchBook data, creating 17 unicorns (companies valued at $1 billion or more) in the process.
  • Of this $23.5 billion, $587.16 million was allocated to crypto and Web 3 companies according to reports.
  • Andreessen Horowitz's first investment in India was in local crypto exchange CoinSwitch Kuber, where it led a round that closed in October 2021 in which the exchange raise $260 million at a $1.9 billion valuation.
  • A16z isn’t commenting on the report, but co-founder and general partner Marc Andreessen has in the past talked about how “tempting” India and other emerging markets are for investment opportunities.
  • Chinese crypto venture capital firm Sino Global Capital, led by Matthew Graham, has also made a big push into India as part of its new $200 million fund, which it announced last October.

CORRECTION (May 3, 10:25 UTC): Corrects typo in the headline.

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