Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund (Aavishkaar Venture India), a venture fund that provides equity financing to entrepreneurial initiatives, especially in India at the bottom of the pyramid, is reportedly raising INR 4.58 billion (the equivalent of USD 100 million) to set up its third “microfinance-focused” private equity fund through Aavishkaar Goodwell. Aavishkaar Goodwell provides private equity to microfinance enterprises in India, and is a for-profit joint venture between Aavishkaar Venture India and Goodwell Investments, a Netherlands-based business development company whose goals are poverty alleviation and sustainable development. The new fund, which is reportedly closed-ended, will have a lifetime of ten years and is “said to be targeting investments in microfinance institutions (MFIs), non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), and the cleantech, agriculture and rural infrastructure sectors” [1].
By Lindsey Shaughnessy, Research Associate
About Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund (AIMVCF): Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund (AIMVCF), formed as a trust in 2001 and then as a venture fund in 2002, aims to promote inclusive development in India’s rural and semi-urban regions by providing equity financing, from USD 50,000 to USD 500,000, to entrepreneurial ventures. AIMVCF was closed in January 2009 after raising USD 14 million.
About Aavishkaar Goodwell India Microfinance Development Company Limited: Aavishkaar Goodwell, incorporated in 2006 as an Indian-Dutch joint venture, defines itself as “a for-profit business development company that provides equity finance and hands-on support to enterprises active in the microfinance sector in India on a socially and commercially sustainable basis.” The investment team in India invests alongside the team that manages Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund. The Dutch microfinance private equity company Goodwell Microfinance Development Company is the leading investor in Aavishkaar Goodwell, along with development financial institutions and commercial banks, including the Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO), the International Finance Corporation and Deutsche Bank.
About Goodwell Investments: Goodwell Investments, based in the Netherlands, is a for-profit business development company that began operations in 2006. Goodwell Investments invests in microfinance organizations that aim to operate on a socially and commercially sustainable basis. Goodwell Investments is the lead investor in Aavishkaar Goodwell, a business development company working in the microfinance sector in India. As of 2009, Goodwell Investments reported USD 25 million in fund assets all of which were allocated to microfinance funds.
Sources and Additional Resources:
[1] Financial Chronicle, “Aavishkaar plans $100m 3rd microfinance fund”, September 19, 2010. http://www.mydigitalfc.com/opportunities/aavishkaar-plans-100m-3rd-microfinance-fund-475
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Aavishkaar Goodwell India Microfinance Development Company Limited
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital Fund (AIMVCF)
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Goodwell Investments
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