Ganesh Ventures has also signed Jack Ma’s eWTP Ecosystem Fund to be its strategic investment partner in India
Ganesh Ventures Founder Jessica Wong
Jessica Wong, former Founding Partner at Hong Kong-based VC fund Cyber Carrier, has launched a new US$250 million VC fund targeting Indian startups.
Christened Ganesh Ventures, the fund aims to invest in startups across sectors like technology, media and telecom (TMT); consumer products; fintech; and healthtech over the next three to five years.
According to a press statement, the fund has already made its first close at US$30 million, with investors from Europe, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China. The average ticket size will be between US$500,000 and US$5 million per startup, a company spokesperson told e27.
The fund will set up offices in Gurgaon, Bengaluru, Hong Kong and Beijing. The team has already started evaluating new projects rather aggressively and intends to close half a dozen deals within this calendar year. Wong herself will spearhead the India operations of the fund.
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In addition, Ganesh Ventures has signed Landmark Capital and Alibaba Founder Jack Ma’s ambitious eWTP Ecosystem Fund (Electronic World Trade Platform, a brainchild of Ma’s dream initiative to boost cross border e-commerce) led by Yongfu Yu. Ganesh Ventures will be eWTP’s strategic investment partner in India.
“We’ve been testing the waters in India for some time and have gained valuable understanding of the market. Our portfolio companies have received continued support from a growing number of strategic partners such as Xiaomi and Alibaba group. The success we have achieved so far with our partners and portfolio strengthens our confidence to engage with more stakeholders and enhance our portfolio,” said Wong, Founder and Managing Partner of Ganesh Ventures.
Ganesh Ventures aims to be a bridge for Indian entrepreneurs, who want to access the Chinese startup ecosystem and stakeholders, so that they can utilise cross-border resources, exchange learnings and achieve market synergies. In addition to investing its own capital, the fund will also open a gateway to other investors for larger follow-on capital raises.
“After years of exploring and analysing India market, we can say with confidence that our investment and post-investment management strategy has worked very well, which is fully validated by our outstanding performance. Our new fund has already participated in the further rounds of HappyEasyGo, GigIndia, Indialends and BeYouPlus re-asserting confidence in our previous investments,” added Wong.
As Founder and Managing Partner of Cyber Carrier, Wong has invested in six Indian startups across fintech, travel and discretionary healthcare sectors, including Zoomcar. Cyber Carrier recently made a profitable partial exit from KrazyBee, a student-lending platform. The VC fund has now shut its operations.
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