Porter, HealthKart deliver multi-fold returns on Kae Capital's first fund

Maiden Fund I achieves more than 3x distribution to paid-in capital, establishing one of India's strongest early-stage track records

Venture capital firm Kae Capital on Tuesday said that Porter and HealthKart, two of its earliest investments, have together returned the firm’s maiden Fund I multiple times over, following a series of recent secondary transactions.

 

“When we raised Fund I, seed investing in India was almost unheard of. Our goal was simple, back extraordinary founders at their earliest stages and stand with them across cycles. To now deliver a top decile DPI number on that very first fund is deeply gratifying,” said Sasha Mirchandani, founding partner, Kae Capital.

 

Launched in 2012, Fund I backed 32 companies across India and the US. Several of these matured into category-defining companies that went on to return the fund many times over.

 

Porter has already returned more than 2x of the fund, while HealthKart has returned the fund on its own with significant further value yet to be realised.

 

Kae Capital’s Fund I India vehicle has fully exited with a DPI (distribution to paid-in capital) of 3.6x as of September 2023, making it one of the best-performing maiden early-stage funds in Indian venture capital.

 

The overseas vehicle is on track to deliver over 5x DPI.

 

Together, they represent one of the strongest maiden fund performances by a home-grown venture capital firm.

 

The portfolio also includes companies such as 1MG, now the country’s largest online pharmacy, and Certa, a compliance and risk platform expanding globally, alongside high-multiple exits like Dailyround, Fynd, Airwoot, and Eventifier among others.

 

Fund I catalysed over $900 million of follow-on capital into its portfolio and supporting companies that have collectively created tens of thousands of jobs in India and over $2.7 billion in enterprise value.

 

With Fund II, Kae backed companies that went on to become category leaders, including Zetwerk, one of the leading manufacturing platforms, along with Nazara, the listed gaming unicorn, and Snapmint, a top fintech platform.

 

Fund III is already showing strong momentum with fast-scaling companies such as Traya, Foxtale, and RecommerceX.

 

Across its three funds, Kae Capital has backed three unicorns.

 

The firm’s early cheques have generated over $7.7 billion in aggregated enterprise value, attracted over $2 billion in follow-on capital, seeded five companies that each crossed $100 million in revenue, and created over 56,000 jobs.

 

“Fund I’s DPI is not just a number, it’s a symbol of what’s possible when early conviction meets enduring partnership,” said Gaurav Chaturvedi, general partner, Kae Capital.

 

Kae said these funds represent its commitment to being a long-term partner for founders across cycles, supporting them from the first cheque through scale.

 

“From our first round to navigating Covid and scaling into a large company, Kae has been thoughtful, proactive, and solution-driven. They’ve consistently added value,” said Amrit Acharya, co-founder of Zetwerk.

 

“Their unwavering support, especially during tough times, helped us cut through the clutter and focus on building,” said Pranav Goel, co-founder of Porter.

 

As India enters a new wave of innovation, Kae is sharpening its focus on AI, intelligent automation, manufacturing resilience, and deeptech.