What is an Angel Investor
Angel investors in India are high-net-worth individuals who invest in small businesses in return for stock. Angel investors for startups, unlike venture capitalists, do not employ an investment fund; instead, they use their own personal wealth. In comparison to venture capitalists, angel investors for startups in India may be more patient with entrepreneurs and willing to provide smaller sums of money over a longer period of time. They do, however, want to see an exit strategy where they may pocket their earnings at some time, usually through a public sale or purchase.
Angel investors for startups invest in a wide range of sectors. According to the University of New Hampshire’s Center for venture research, angel-funded enterprises were at the seed and startup stage for the first time in several years in 2020. The overall amount invested in that year was $25.3 billion, up 6% from the previous year.
Angel investors for startups in India, as their name implies, were most likely dispatched from above. These extremely wealthy individuals donate funds to the deserving but needy businesses in exchange for convertible debt or ownership stock. Many of them are now using equity crowdfunding to invest online. Angel investors are banding together to form angel networks in order to pool their resources and offer assistance to portfolio firms.
However, as businesses have evolved and ridden the stormy wave throughout the years, the ground zero for active angel investors has been dynamic. In the list of angel investors in India, there have been a few new arrivals and a few losses. But who should you and your business be on the lookout for right now?
Angel investors in India are in plenty. Here we have mentioned the list of the most prominent angel investors for startups that can be reached out to for funds in their respective domains of expertise.
List of Some Angel Investors in India
Rajan Anandan:
Rajan Anandan, the Managing Director of Google India and an MIT graduate, was one of the most active angel investors for startups in 2017. Rajan is the co-founder of Blue Ocean Ventures, Sri Lanka’s first seed fund, and is now investing in entrepreneurs across India and Sri Lanka. Rajan admits that he loves to invest in B2B firms that are co-owned. He does not, however, rule out the possibility of serendipity at work! So give it a shot pitching to one of the country’s most promising investors (and an active angel investor at that!). Rajan Anandan invests majorly data analytics, healthcare, consumer internet, and mobile commerce, to name a few. Some of his major investments are-
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Anupam Mittal:
The name of the company that found the Founder People Group was from him and he as an angel investors for startups in India was responsible for revolutionising the Indian arranged marriage sector. Anupam Mittal has established himself as a prominent figure in the angel investor community thanks to his highly successful enterprise Shaadi.com. Anupam Mittal’s portfolio has grown by tenfold in the last couple of years, now includes around 50 firms, including the very profitable Ola Cabs. What makes one of the most active angel investors in India so successful? A large market opportunity, long-term viability, and scalability. He majorly invests in the fields of technology, healthcare, consumer internet, mobile and SaaS. His major past investments are namely–
T.V. Mohandas Pai:
Mohandas Pai, the former chief financial officer of Infosys, is one of the most prolific angel investors for startups. His investing concentration has primarily been on early-stage technological businesses. His technique has been that of an opportunistic investor, since he has made a conscious decision to make very small investments. He is also a staunch supporter of bringing forth female entrepreneurs. It’s no surprise that Shraddha Sharma’s Yourstory got in the way! Pai has direct and indirect stakes in around a dozen firms at the moment. He majorly invests in consumer internet, techn startups and media. His past investments are namely-
YourStory, Zoomcar, Kaaryah, Zimmber and FairCent.
Girish Mathrubootham:
Girish Mathrubootham, a self-described customer service fanatic, is the founder and CEO of FreshWorks, India’s most successful customer service software company. He is believed to have an eagle’s eye for the correct items and to have created user-centric products. If you have a business concept that fits this category and are seeking for an angel investor in India, we recommend getting to know him. His areas of interest are consumer internet, SaaS, enterprise softwares, education, customer support and content & listing platforms. His major past investments are namely–
Anand Chandrasekaran:
Throughout his professional career, Anand Chandrasekaran, who cofounded now NASDAQ listed Aeroprise in 2001, has held several positions in various firms. Chandrasekaran has previously worked for firms like Facebook and Future Group. He just became a partner at General Catalyst a few days ago. He’s been involved in 130 deals, with 70 percent of them involving Indian businesses. Cloud management firm OpsLyft, retail aggregator SuperK, and B2B eCommerce platform Venwiz are among his latest investments in India, making him an essential part of the list of angel investors in India.
Dheeraj Jain:
Dheeraj Jain, a director at London-based Redcliffe Capital, as an angel investorfor startups has made some high-value investments in nearly seven companies last year. His method has been to dig deep into existing portfolios and follow their progress up close instead of just writing a lot of checks, with no interference from any other angel network.
Sandeep Tandon:
Sandeep Tandon is the co-founder of mobile wallet FreeCharge and the managing director of Tandon Technology Ventures and Infinix Healthcare. He graduated from Harvard University. In 2017, as an anel investor for startups in India, he has made 23 investments, including ZipLoan, an online lending company, and Fashalot, a fashion and retail discovery tool. He is a mentor to several technological start-ups and is an active angel investor for startups in the community.
Anand Ladsariya:
Anand Ladsariya, the founder of Everest Flavours, is a former Chairman of CHEMEXCIL. In the Indian chemical sector, he has a reputation for being able to leverage Mumbai Angels and the Indian Angel Network in quest of a revolutionary innovation as an angel investor for startups. When it comes to making judgments and investments, he prioritises finding a good team when adding to his portfolio of over 90 firms. With such a diverse portfolio of investments, he’s a well-respected angel investor for startups in India. Location-based services, customer support tools, content discovery, social media, gaming, and web design are some of the major domains in which he invests. Asiatic, Oyo Rooms, Myntra, Appsdaily, Tonbo Imaging, Uniphore, and Assured Risk, Mobiquest are examples of previous investments.
Sanjay Mehta:
Sanjay Mehta, the creator of MAIA Intelligence, is a member of the Indian Angel Network, Venture Nursery, and Mumbai Angel Network organizations as an angel investor for startups in India. Sanjay’s areas of interest have included social, mobile, analytics, and cloud, attributable to his experience in technology. He confesses that he usually spends for 5-7 years in a business before looking for exits. Sanjay works with his portfolio firms to help them interact with CIOs and CTOs, as well as providing advice on advertising, PR, branding, and marketing. Clean technology, enterprise software, consumer internet, and healthcare are some of the major domains in which he invests. Loginext, Lawrato, OYO, Box8, Orange Scape, and Fab Alley are examples of previous investments.
Ratan Tata:
In addition to being the Chairman of Tata Industries and a dynamic business leader, he is also an active angel investor in India. With investments, guidance, and more, he has mentored and highlighted a number of startups, projects, and companies. He is regarded as one of the leading actors in the community of angel investors in India, having worked with companies such as –
Vijay Shekhar Sharma:
Paytm’s Founder and CEO is Vijay Shekhar Sharma. He graduated from Delhi College of Engineering with a degree in electronics and communications and is well-versed in the development of successful mobile businesses. He’s well-connected, and if you offer him an angel investment, he’ll be just as enthusiastic about growing your company as you are. His skills, industry knowledge, and resources can help you expand your business with fresh ideas and funding assistance. He comes highly recommended as an advisor and angel investor for startups in India.
Kunal Bahl:
Kunal is the co-founder and CEO of Jasper, India’s largest couponing startup, which operates SnapDeal, India’s premier group purchasing web. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He enjoys travelling across distant places of the world among his other hobbies like managing business and staying up with current market trends. He’s been an intensely engaged and on the top of the list of angel investors in India all this time, while savoring and researching development politics in India.
Binny Bansal:
Binny Bansal, the co-founder of Flipkart, which is likely the most valuable Indian company at $36 billion, has been an active angel investor for startups in India. Walmart purchased Flipkart in May of 2018. In November of the same year, Bansal left the firm. In December 2018, he and former eKart executives Saikiran Krishnamurthy and Neeraj Aggarwal founded xto10x, a SaaS consulting firm. He invested in 12 businesses last year.
Most Recent Investments-
Kunal Shah:
When it comes to the Indian startup environment, Kunal Shah, the creator of financial unicorn CRED, is a well-known figure. In 2021, he was the angel investor for startups who distributed the most checks. In 2021, Shah, who refused to be a shark on the renowned Shark Tank India show, is an integral part of the list of angel investors with 62 startup fundraising agreements. In total, he has made 150 investments in startups. CRED joined the unicorn club last year and later increased its value with further financing. As an angel investor for startups, he hasn’t, however, restricted himself to a single industry. His personal portfolio includes financial, ecommerce, and SaaS firms, among others.
Naveen Tewari:
InMobi was was the brainchild of Naveen Tewari and his idea of perpetual disruption and innovation is deeply ingrained in the DNA of InMobibians and resonates in every nook and corner of the company. His ambition is to reimagine advertising in a truly ‘user-first’ fashion, allowing the mobile ecosystem to reach its full potential. He graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT) with a bachelor’s degree in engineering and a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard Business School. He can identify the constraints and opportunities that matter to every angel investor for startus in India, in every specific business based on first-hand experiences and expertise. Coworking Spaces, Online Games, and Technology are among the major domains in which he has invested.
Examples of previous investments-
Zishaan Hayath:
Zishaan Hayath is the co-founder of Toppr.com and an aspiring Angel Investor in India’s startup scene. He was formerly the co-founder and VP of Chaupaati Bazaar, as well as the VP of Futurebazaar.com. He worked for Opera Solutions as an associate consultant. He also worked at ITC Limited as an assistant manager. Education technology and SaaS products are some of the major domains in which he invests. Shadowfax, SquadRun, Wealthy, Qyk, AdPushup, and Orobind Fitness Technologies being some examples of his investments as an angel investor for startups in India.
Most Recent Investments –
Amit Lakhotia:
Amit Lakhotia, a former vice president of Paytm, the now publicly traded payment behemoth, invests in startups in addition to operating his Park+ company. Lakhotia founded his smart auto parking firm Park+ in 2019 after investing in finance startup BharatPe and social commerce platform Trell as an angel investor in India. It has previously secured a $25 million Series B investment from Sequoia Capital, Matrix, and others. Lakhotia funded firms including Fixcraft, GoKwik, and Junio and participated in nine investment deals in 2021.
Amrish Rau:
Amrish Rau began his career in 1996 as a sales manager for Siemens Nixdorf and has progressively progressed to become a two-time entrepreneur as well as entering list of anel investors in India. In 2013, he and Jitendra Gupta co-founded the Mumbai-based digital payments business Citrus Pay, which was eventually sold to PayU in 2016. He became the CEO of Pine Labs in 2020. Pine Labs, which is managed by Rau, is preparing for an IPO and has just obtained a $20 million investment from SBI. Last week, Rau also announced the creation of White Venture Capital, a venture capital business he co-founded with his former co-founder Jitendra Gupta.
Ritesh Agarwal:
Ritesh Agarwal’s hospitality startup OYO, which has already gotten in-principle approval from the NSE and the BSE, is likely one of the country’s youngest billionaires. He’s also a startup investor. In 2021, as an angel investor in India, Agarwal has invested in over 35 businesses through his family office, Aroa Ventures, which is managed by Gaurav Gulati. The overall investment is expected to reach $10 million, according to estimates. Dukaan, a retail technology firm sponsored by Zomato, and Nektar.ai, a B2B sales efficiency business, were among his investments last year.
Rajesh Sawhney:
Industry veteran Rajesh Sawhney is the creator of GSF Accelerator, a business accelerator programme. Sawhney is a board member of IndiaMART and the CEO of ixigo. Fintech business Paisagrowth, edtech venture NxtWave, and a house construction marketplace Kolo were among his investments from the previous year. Sawhney has been an active angel investor in India for many years, having funded over 100 companies.
The Pros And Cons of Angel Investors For Startups
Advantages of Angel Investors:
Since angel investor for startups are offered ownership shares in exchange for money, for a business having an angel investor implies you won’t have to repay the cash. Angel funding is often reserved for enterprises that have progressed beyond the startup stage. These businesses have showed potential in terms of earnings, but they still require funding to create new items or expand. Because an angel investor’s money is on the line, they may be especially eager to assist you in succeeding through mentorship or direct managerial assistance. Some other advantages of having angel investors for startups are:
- BAs have the freedom to make swift investment choices since there is no need for collateral – such as personal assets – and they have access to your investor’s sector knowledge and relationships.
- Due to increased monitoring from the outside, there is more discipline.
- The mentorship from a BA or managerial skills
- There are no repayments or interest charges
Disadvantages of Angel Investors
Angel investors for startups often want 10% to 50% ownership of your firm in exchange for money, which is a significant drawback. This implies that if the angel investors believe that they are preventing the firm from prospering, business owners may lose ownership of their company. It’s critical to consider how much stock you want to give away to an investor in exchange for cash, since if you give too much, you may lose control of the firm if things don’t go well and the angel investor owns your business more than you do. Some other disadvantages of having angel investors for startups are:
- Investments of less than £5,000 or more than £500,000 are not recommended.
- Finding a suitable angel investor for startup takes longer.
- Handing up a piece of your company
- A BA’s structural support is weaker than that of an investment firm.
