9Unicorns rebrands to 100Unicorns, launches second fund with $200M corpus

100Unicorns, previously known as 9Unicorns, has announced the launch of its second accelerator fund, aptly rebranded as 100Unicorns Fund II. 

With a robust target of $200 million, the fund introduces an additional greenshoe option that could potentially raise another $100 million if demand exceeds expectations.

The fund plans to invest in 200 startups over a period of 5.5 years, with a particular focus on diverse sectors such as SaaS, direct-to-consumer (D2C), fintech, electric vehicles (EV), energy, defence, and healthcare. 

What's new with 100Unicorns Fund II?

The fund plans to announce its first close by November with a target of $100 million. The initial investment per startup will range from $250,000 to $1 million, with the possibility of follow-up funding up to $3 million.

Apoorva Ranjan Sharma, the co-founder of 100Unicorns, highlights the massive growth and funding inflow in the Indian startup ecosystem as a key driver for this new fund.

"We are excited about this next step of launching a $200 million fund that aligns us to the needs of the Indian startup ecosystem," he said.

International expansion plans

Expanding its geographical reach, 100Unicorns plans to deploy 10-15% of the new fund internationally, targeting markets in the US, Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

Ankit Jain, a partner at 100Unicorns, expressed the fund's early success in supporting startups from Tier-II and Tier-III cities and its focus on solving local problems with a global vision.

"With the upcoming fund, we strive to create an integrated ecosystem and build a full-stack growth portfolio for early-stage startups to navigate a seamless journey to become category leaders," Jain added.

Notable investments

The first fund, which was launched in 2020 with a corpus of $100 million, has already been 75% deployed in over 145 companies, including notable startups like ShipRocket, BluSmart, Videoverse, Zypp Electric, and others.

The firm said that these investments have turned into multi-bagger success stories, positioning it as a significant player in venture capital. 

Creating 100 unicorn startups

9Unicorns has rebranded itself as 100Unicorns from 9Unicorns with the aim to create 100 unicorns (startups valued at $ 1 billion) under its second fund.

"There is a consistent investment requirement in India. There is a player which is required to do at least 1,000 investments in the next 7 years and develop these companies. Our target is to create 100 unicorns potentially in the next 10 years," Sharma added.