UAE tech startup fund shortlists Bengaluru for future investments – sme News

UAE-based, Global Millennial Capital (GMCL), which invests in global tech startups, is currently analysing the Bengaluru market for investing through its Fund I and upcoming Fund II. “We believe we have a significant investment opportunity in Bengaluru for the next 10 to 12 years, which is our typical investment cycle,” Andreea Danila, founder and general partner, GMCL, told Fe.

The firm announced the close of its first fund at $20 million in February this year. Led by Qatar-based Al Attiyah family office, with participation from various Gulf-based and international investors, the fund has invested in 15 startups so far. It will continue to invest in IP-focused technology businesses for the next three years. By 2026-27, it plans to seek divestment opportunities. Simultaneously, the firm plans to roll out a Fund II in the next 18 months.

GMCL was established in 2021 to invest in technology businesses with unique access to leading academic institutions, incubators, accelerators, and corporate venture capital firms. The firm uses a research-driven model to augment its deal-origination capability and to automate the initial assessment of startup features.

“Bengaluru, given its strong track record of around 45 unicorns, is a key market for us. We have had a very good experience and exposure in Silicon Valley so far, where we made some investments already. We have made co-investments with Khosla Ventures and some other big names,” Danila said. “We have now started looking at Bengaluru, Singapore, Shanghai as they are some of the key global innovation hubs,” she added.

Artificial intelligence, deeptech, blockchain technology and digital ledgers, decentralized finance and cloud computing are some of the key areas the firm invests in. The firm initially looked at North America, with a 30-40% exposure to key investments. Today, it is looking to bet on Indian entrepreneurs operating in these areas. “We think India has a great market in terms of the numbers of consumers, the growth that is taking place and the skill set,” she said.

The firm invests in pre-seed to IPO and looks at emerging technology hubs globally at an early stage. It also looks at having exposure to a longer holding period in its existing partnerships. “We are very early partners in the founder journey, but with participation in later rounds as co-investors,” she said.

The firm believes that technology and intellectual property companies will generate the next large public listed companies and Bengaluru will be a huge contributor. “For India, we are still early stage, but we are very committed to this geography. We are learning more about the market and building relationships with some of the key stakeholders. We are very encouraged by how the government looks at building the ecosystem, and definitely very impressive metrics of the venture capital ecosystem here,” she said.

“The Bengaluru story particularly is really great. This is where the next generation of talent is emerging and significant capital inflows are taking place. So we are very optimistic,” she added.