siliconindia | | AUGUST - 202119business model beyond the pandemic. There will be an increased weightage on the ability of the team to build the organization as well as implement their business plan while working remotely. Factors such as dependency on businesses partnerships, face-to-face meetings for customer acquisition and the tech-savviness of the customers will also play an important role while evaluating startups.BLinC Invest follows a co-founder approach to investing by working very closely with the management team of its portfolio companies and supporting them across all business areas like product, strategy, organization development, fundraising, etc. We look for EdTech and FinTech focused startups and MSMEs that operate in a white-space and have leveraged technology to build meaningful products. We prefer companies that have gained significant market traction, have achieved some revenue and are looking for funds to scale. We are closely monitoring investment opportunities in hobbies & co-curricular segment, cognitive skills, admissions &career counseling, digital lending, investment technology, neobanks and a few more areas across EdTech and FinTech.As far as EdTech is concerned, the pandemic has provided significant tailwinds to businesses like ClassPlus, which caters to the offline tutoring market by providing a technology platform that enables the educators to start their own online academies. ClassPlus has recently raised a $65 Mn round.The acquisition of Aakash by BYJU's has proven how synergies can exist between the offline and the online business models.In FinTech sector, there has been a significant development in the InsurTech segment with D2C insurance companies like Acko and GoDigit. The neobanking segment in India has been evolving with players like Jupiter, ChqBook, Niyo,Open, etc. that are catering to specific needs of individuals and SMEs.In spite of operating in a crowded lending market, ProgCap has recently raised $25 Mn, indicating there is still a large growth opportunity in the lending market.Our first portfolio has achieved an overall return of 4.5x with an IRR of 40%. We have recently launched BLinC Fund II, a SEBI-registered INR 100 Cr fund to invest in EdTech and FinTech companies in India. The Fund has achieved its first close with INR 30 Cr. We have also made our 1st investment from the fund in an InsurTech company named Vital (www.getvital.in). Looking at the interest of investors, we expect to achieve the final closing of our Fund by the end of this year. Going forward, we will keep raising small funds to build concentrated portfolios and target a high IRR that is upwards of 30%Tips for Early-Stage Startups Seeking FundingIt is all about execution, prioritization and defining the short-term and the long-term focus. Early-stage startups should have a detailed understanding of their target market, competitive landscape and the target customers. It is critical to think from the customer's perspective and solve at least one real pain point of the customers. It is important to consistently prioritize and make efforts to achieve the product development milestones and the targets of the business plan. While pitching to the investors, it is important to give comfort to the investors around your market understanding and your execution capabilities. Education and Financial Services sectors are the key pillars of growth for every developing economy
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