Kalaari Capital firm CXXO announces $10 mn seed fund for women founders

CXXO, a Kalaari Capital initiative, has launched a programme to level the playing field for women founder-CEOs in India by making it easier for them to access capital, community and coaching. Kalaari Capital has set aside $10 million annually, to invest in startups that have women founders as key decision makers, ideally as CEOs.

India’s startup ecosystem is booming, with 16 new unicorns minted in 2021 alone, taking the total number to 53. However, only one of the unicorns has a woman as its founder-CEO.

To address this, the CXXO program seeks to meet the specific needs of each CEO and her startup, providing not only capital but also bespoke support. The program will create a cohort of 8-10 women founder-CEOs each year who have the ambition to create significant impact.

“Successful women founders as company builders serve an important role in Indian economic development. The CXXO programme will ensure there is no bias and discrimination on access to capital. We believe these founders will pioneer workplaces that are equitable and inclusive for more women to rise,” said Vani Kola, Managing Director, Kalaari Capital.

CXXO has set up a leadership team of women pathmakers to guide and spearhead this movement in the startup ecosystem. This includes Ankiti Bose, Co-founder & CEO, Zilingo, Lathika Pai, Country Head, Microsoft, Venture Capital and PE Partnerships, Paroma Roy Chowdhury, Chief Communications & Public Affairs Officer, Dream Sports, Priyanka Gill, Founder & CEO, POPxo - Plixxo, Co-founder & President, MyGlamm,  Shradha Sharma, Founder & CEO, YourStory Media and Kola.

The programme has three pillars. First is access to capital, women-founder-CEOs face a significant bias in access to funding. Between January 2018 and June 2020, startups led by women founder-CEOs received only 1.43 per cent of the total capital raised in India. This programme offers Seed and Series A funding ($500K to $5 million) to the cohort and subsequent access to growth funding and resources.

Two, the programme will give access to community. CXXO will activate connections for founders to develop their ideas and grow their businesses. It aims to help women founder-CEOs expand their access to people who matter in their leadership journey.

Finally, focus on coaching. Given the limited number of women founder-CEOs in the Indian ecosystem, many of their achievements go unacknowledged and challenges unaddressed. CXXO will match each entrepreneur with a Champion who will play the role of a trusted advisor.