3one4 Capital’s Fund I DPI Milestone: Leading the Benchmark for Indian Venture Capital

Breaking New Ground: Amongst The First Indian VC Firms to Achieve Fund-Returning DPI on a 7-Year Cycle

In 2016, 3one4 Capital launched Fund I with a conviction-driven, research-led thesis: that India’s indigenous startup ecosystem was on the brink of explosive growth and that early-stage investing needed a more disciplined, operator-led, bottom-up-oriented approach to generate top-tier returns consistently while helping founders build significant outcomes more deterministically.

Since then, we have validated this approach by consistently leading the industry benchmarks on performance. We are excited to announce that Fund I has achieved a +1.0 DPI (Distributed to Paid-In Capital) within 7 years from its final close, fully returning principal capital to our investors while remaining on track to deliver an additional 4x multiple on unrealised value over the remainder of its term.

This milestone isn’t just about DPI - it cements the firm as amongst the first Indian VC firms to deliver full capital return on a 7-year venture cycle while raising new vintages every two years at larger sizes, delivering top-quartile performance for nine consecutive years while being on track to convert the unrealised TVPI to DPI within the full tenure of the fund.

• +1.0 DPI within industry-leading timelines of 7 years from final close
• Top-quartile TVPI and Net IRR, reaffirming consistent outperformance
• Unrealised returns tracking toward an additional realisable 4x multiple

These returns were delivered without utilising captive opportunity or extension funds, GP-led secondary buyouts, LP unit sales, or sales to secondary-focused funds. All exits so far have been through M&A (trade sales), IPO, or share sales to late-stage investors in expansion rounds. This demonstrates the unambiguous value creation within the fund, having invested in and built clear winners across multiple sectors that have consistently attracted top-tier venture capital and private equity investors in follow-on equity rounds.

A Portfolio of Proven Market Leaders

When we launched Fund I in 2016, India’s venture capital ecosystem was mid-way through its first development cycle. Exits were rare, investment theses were top-down and outside-in, Indian institutional capital remained limited, and many startups struggled to secure follow-on funding. Scaling a company from seed to liquidity was still largely uncharted territory, and few firms had consistently achieved sustainable, high-quality exits.

We recognised the shifts taking place in India - rising internet penetration, increasing market formalisation, accelerating policy support for digitalisation, unique policy and public utilities such as the India Stack, and a growing entrepreneurial talent pool - and built our investment approach centered upon backing companies that would define the country’s next phase of economic transformation. With the Indian IPO as the preferred destination for our projected winners, we ensured our companies were domiciled in India, helped create a local capital pool of LPs and mid-stage investors, and worked closely with our companies across sectors to partner with India’s largest corporations and institutions as customers and investors.

3one4 Capital’s multi-sector approach has been central to our ability to identify and scale category-defining companies across industries. Our portfolio spans consumer tech, SaaS, enterprise automation, and deep tech, allowing us to capture high-growth opportunities at the intersection of technology and market shifts across the span of India’s GDP expansion.

Companies like Licious and Bugworks are prime examples of our leading work across multiple sectors. Licious (Consumer), India’s first D2C brand unicorn, has built a vertically integrated supply chain to set new benchmarks for food safety, quality, and customer trust. Similarly, Bugworks (Deep Tech) is shaping the future of Indian biotech with its groundbreaking work in next-generation antibiotics and immuno-oncology solutions. By tackling global antimicrobial resistance and advancing cancer treatment, Bugworks is positioned at the forefront of deep-tech-led healthcare innovation.

Fund I’s portfolio has delivered multiple successful exits through IPOs, M&A, and late-stage equity sales, proving our ability to generate timely liquidity through multiple channels.

After scaling into one of India’s largest SaaS companies, Darwinbox delivered a high-multiple exit through a late-stage equity sale for Fund I. Global investors Partners Group and KKR backed its continued expansion with a $140M investment. The Darwinbox exit registered an MOIC of 58.07x and an IRR of 65.08% for Fund I.

Tracxn, a leading market intelligence platform, went public on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in October 2022, achieving a market capitalisation of $98.3 million at listing. Fund I successfully registered an exit via a sale of its shareholding post-listing.

Pocket Aces, India's leading digital entertainment company, entered a strategic alliance with Saregama, India's most esteemed music label. This was one of the largest venture-backed ezits in the Indian media and entertainment sector. 3one4 Capital received an all-cash exit as part of the M&A led by this public company.

Our profitable exits from Wiom (equity sale to follow-on investor), DoSelect (acquired by Naukri.com), Wigzo (acquired by Shiprocket), Aereo (equity sale to follow-on investor), Inc42 (equity sale to follow-on investor), Jigsaw (acquired), Oust (acquired), and Loco (acquired), amongst others, further highlight our ability to drive liquidity across different sectors and channels, reflecting our structured approach to investing and our ability to partner deeply with founders from early-stage scaling to high-value exits.

Key Statistics on Follow-On Funding and Exits from Fund I

• For every $1 invested by Fund I, its portfolio has raised $67 in follow-on equity funding. The portfolio companies have raised $898 million in follow-on funding.
• 80 rounds of follow-on equity closed at higher valuations in Fund I’s portfolio
• 2 unicorns (Licious and Darwinbox)
• 1 IPO
• 6 M&A exits
• 11 profitable exits so far, with 4 additional profitable exits in progress as of date
• The latest exit is an equity sale of the fund’s partial shareholding in Darwinbox. The company closed a $140M round led by Partners Group and KKR.
  
  • Fund I registered an MOIC of 58.07x and an IRR of 65.08% on its exit

These exits are not just financial milestones—they validate our calibrated approach to delivering consistent compounding over decadal timelines. They reflect the careful selection of high-quality ideas, sustained post-investment engagement to support their individualised scale-up journeys, and strategic problem-solving to maximise enterprise value. Each company represents a business that has successfully navigated multiple event windows over the last decade, built a strong foundation, and created long-term value for all stakeholders involved.

The remaining portfolio is on track for successful exits or is preparing for IPO filings targeting the next 18 months, allowing us to translate the gains into delivered DPI within the fund's remaining tenure.

A Thesis-Driven Approach That Delivers

Over multiple cycles, our investment thesis has remained clear: understand the Indian markets and competitive advantages deeply, identify and back high-potential companies early, build concentrated positions, and work closely with founders to develop market leaders.

We have consistently invested in SaaS & Enterprise Tech, supporting India’s rise as a global software hub, and have been early believers in Fintech, identifying structural shifts in digital finance, embedded banking, and alternative credit. Our investments in Consumer Platforms have capitalised on behavioral shifts toward digital-first consumption, while our conviction in Deep Tech has positioned us at the forefront of emerging, defensible and IP-led businesses.

This sectoral specialisation and structured engagement model have allowed us to invest ahead of market trends while ensuring that our portfolio companies scale capital-efficiently to build consensus around their verticals. By maintaining high involvement and working closely with founders to solve problems, we have built a portfolio that delivers not just in valuation terms but in real enterprise outcomes.

Delivering Benchmark-Leading Performance Against Global and Local Peers

3one4 Capital has been ranked as India’s top-performing VC firm for two of its funds in Preqin’s Alternative Assets report, a globally recognised benchmark for asset management. Published in 2021, the Asia-Pacific-focused report highlights the firm’s seed and early-stage funds as the best-performing India-focused venture capital funds. With industry-leading Net IRRs, 3one4 Capital’s Rising I and Fund II have secured the top two spots among India-focused VC funds from the 2010-2018 vintage years, reaffirming the firm’s consistent outperformance in venture investing in relation to its peers, both local and global.

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Building a Scalable, Repeatable Model for Early-Stage VC

Achieving consistent success in venture capital requires a robust investment framework, deep engagement with portfolio companies, and a deterministic approach to scaling value over time. From the start, we structured 3one4 Capital to be focused on performance through disciplined execution and values-based alignment with our investors and founders.

We have built a model that raises new vintages every two years at larger but measured sizes, ensuring that our investment strategy remains relevant and scalable without diluting our discipline or conviction. Our investment discipline, sectoral foresight, and ability to effectively time exits have positioned us as one of India's most consistent performers in early-stage venture capital.

Our team, with an average age below 30, operates with a first-principles mindset - bringing fresh perspectives, deep sectoral research, and an ability to adapt quickly to shifting market conditions. We believe that resilient execution is not just a function of tenure but of expertise, agility, and alignment of values, and we have proven this over our nine years of operations.

Navigating Market Cycles with a Structured Approach

Since Fund I’s inception, we have seen multiple global events impact the venture capital cycle in India, each bringing different challenges and opportunities. The 2016-2019 period saw increasing institutional LP participation in Indian VC, following the early validation of India’s startup economy. The COVID-correction and the recovery-driven boom in 2020-2021 led to an accelerated inflow of follow-on capital, as digital adoption surged and valuations expanded rapidly. This was followed by the market correction of 2022-2023, which again forced companies to realign their growth strategies and focus on profitability.

Through each of these event windows, our companies have continued to scale, compound, and return capital. While many portfolios struggled to adapt to changing conditions, our investment strategy remained grounded in planned sustainability, resilient unit economics, and structured growth.

We delivered a model focused on resilience, ensuring that companies could withstand market fluctuations without overextending capital or sacrificing long-term value potential. This disciplined approach has allowed us to maintain top-quartile TVPI and net IRR, demonstrating the effectiveness of our structured, long-term outlook. It has also helped us translate paper gains to distributed cash as per the committed portfolio harvesting roadmap.

A Moment of Gratitude

To our LPs, we are deeply grateful for your trust and conviction. Your support has enabled us to build a firm that operates with transparency, rigor, and a relentless focus on delivering performance. Your belief in patient, high-conviction investing has been the foundation of our success, and we remain committed to returning capital responsibly while maximising long-term value delivery.

To our founders, your vision, execution, and resilience make this possible. We are proud to be your partners in building industry-defining businesses and will continue to support your journey as you scale into market leaders.

To our ecosystem partners, venture capital is a collective effort. The shared insights, syndications, and strategic collaborations that shape the startup landscape are invaluable, and we are grateful to be part of this dynamic community.

This milestone is not the culmination of our journey—it is a reflection of what we have built and a preview of what’s to come. As India expands towards $10 trillion in GDP and beyond, the next decade will continue to see the country’s innovation ecosystem mature and play a larger role in democratising prosperity for its citizens. The future is not something that happens to us; it’s something we actively create. We are excited to play a role in shaping this future.

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