Momentum Capital invests in climate, health startups with Rs 60 crore fund

India is among the world's most climate-vulnerable countries, but attracts less than 4 per cent of global climate-tech VC funding, with most of it concentrated in mobility

Climate tech investment in India has so far largely been concentrated in the mobility sector. Now, venture capital firm Momentum Capital, which closed its first fund with a corpus of Rs 60 crore last year, is now taking a different route. It is backing Indian-origin founders in health and climate domains, but focusing on climate ventures beyond mobility, said Ankur Shrivastava, founder and managing partner of the firm.  

 

He added that even if India is among the world's most climate-vulnerable countries, less than 4 per cent of global climate-tech VC funding flows into the country, with most of it concentrated in mobility.

 

"If you look at the graph of where the emissions come from versus where the funding has gone, it's very skewed, and not every sector that contributes to the carbon dioxide or greenhouse gas emissions has seen investment in India. So, Momentum is focusing on hard-to-abate sectors such as construction, packaging, new materials, and industrial decarbonisation, areas that remain underserved but are critical to both India's long-term sustainability and economic resilience," said Shrivastava.

 

Under these categories, the firm focuses on pre-seed and seed-stage companies. The United States-based fund has so far put money in 16 companies, out of a total target of 23-24 investments. A few companies that have received investment as part of this fund include Dharaksha, Confido Health, and Vimano.

 

"We closed the fund in April 2024 and are currently in the deployment phase. Out of 16 companies we have invested in, 13 are climate-related firms, and three are focused on health. Over the next 7-8 months, we will fully deploy this fund," Shrivastava said. The initial cheque sizes are in the range of Rs 1-2 crore.

 

Shrivastava mentioned that the limited partners (LPs) are mostly ultra-high-net-worth individuals. "We don't have large institutions yet, but we have high-net-worth individuals, which comprises largely the Indian diaspora outside of India. We also don't have India-based LPs yet. It's all money outside of India," he said.

 

Notably, in India, from 2022, the funding in climate-tech companies has consistently decreased from $3.14 billion (399 rounds) to $2.18 billion in 2024 (346 rounds). The year-to-date funding stands at $2.05 billion (163 rounds).