Kotak Alternate Asset Managers (Kotak Alt) has achieved a significant milestone by marking the first close of its dedicated life sciences fund at INR 250 crore (approximately $29 million). The fund, with an ambitious target corpus of INR 1,600 crore (around $185 million), demonstrates the growing investor confidence in India’s life sciences and healthcare innovation ecosystem.
The fund has attracted a diverse group of investors, including family offices, ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNIs), industry veterans, and institutional participants. This broad-based support underscores the strategic importance of life sciences startups in India’s evolving technological landscape.
Ashish Ranjan, director of private equity at Kotak Alt, emphasized the firm’s commitment to the sector: “Life sciences is a core sector where we deploy capital across the company lifecycle—from early to growth and late stages.” The fund will focus on investments in medical devices, digital health, consumer wellness, diagnostics, and healthcare delivery.
Key Investment Highlights:
- First Close: INR 250 crore
- Target Corpus: INR 1,600 crore
- Investment Focus: Early to growth-stage life sciences startups
- Sectors: Medical devices, digital health, consumer wellness, diagnostics, delivery
- Total Healthcare Investments (Past Two Years): INR 4,000 crore
Kotak Alt’s track record in the healthcare sector is impressive. In the past two years, the Kotak Mahindra Group’s alternative assets management entity has invested a total of INR 4,000 crore in healthcare. Previous investments include backing D2C nutrition startup Nutrabay and participating in the Series A funding of biotech startup Ahammune Biosciences.
Founded in 2005, Kotak Alt has established itself as a significant player in alternative investments, having raised and managed over $22 billion across various asset classes including private equity, real estate, infrastructure, and special situations.
The fund’s launch comes at a time of heightened investor interest in life sciences and healthcare innovation. Its healthcare and life sciences fund, incorporated in 2018, has already made 19 investments, demonstrating a strategic and focused approach to sector development.
For the Tamil Nadu startup ecosystem, this fund represents a significant opportunity. While not geographically limited, the substantial corpus could potentially attract and support innovative life sciences startups in the region, further strengthening Tamil Nadu’s reputation as a hub for healthcare and technological innovation.
The timing of the fund’s first close aligns with a broader trend of venture capital firms raising substantial funds. Recent examples include Bharat Value Fund’s INR 1,250 crore first close and Cornerstone Ventures’ $40 million first close in their respective funds.
