Global Corporate Venturing Rising Stars Awards 2018: Karthik Prabhakar & Kamlesh Patre

One of India’s most active venture investors, IDG Ventures India (IDGVI) is also perhaps unique in seeing one of its sister corporate venturing units acquire the parent business and then commit to the funds in other regions.

US-based IT media and data firm International Data Group (IDG) agreed in January last year to an acquisition by conglomerate China Oceanwide and IDG Capital, its own China-based venture capital affiliate.

IDG Capital will take control of IDG’s corporate venturing business through the deal while China Oceanwide will be the controlling shareholder in the firm’s financial data analysis subsidiary IDC and IDG Communications, which oversees IDG’s media and events activities.

IDG was founded by Pat McGovern in 1964 and gradually built up a large stable of IT media publications, entering the Chinese market in 1980 with the introduction of a local version of its Computerworld magazine. McGovern was chairman of the company before his death in 2014.

Known until recently as IDG Capital Partners, IDG Capital was formed in 1993 as a US-based, China-focused VC firm and was sponsored by IDG.

IDG Capital latterly moved into China full-time and made a series of lucrative early-stage investments, most notably in search engine provider Baidu, video streaming platform Youku Tudou, online travel agency Ctrip and smartphone producer Xiaomi, which is planning a reported $100bn initial public offering.

Meanwhile, IDG itself helped to set up the US-focused IDG Ventures and developed a network of VC affiliates that spanned branches in India, Vietnam and Korea. IDG is a substantial limited partner for each of the firms and it will be that position IDG Capital will assume.

Hugo Shong, founding general partner of IDG Capital, at the time of its takeover said: “IDG’s culture is at the core of its success, and its strength has always been rooted in the talent and dedication of its people.

“Our focus going forward will be on investing in the company and its people for growth over the long term, as we carry the flag for Pat’s legacy for many years to come.”

And while China remains the centre of much attention IDGVI is just as prominent in its local territory and made 16 deals in 2017 across a range of industries. Although most deals are earlier-stage, IDGVI co-led the series E round of $77m for PolicyBazaar, an India-based online insurance policy aggregator, in October.

Its earlier deals last year included US-based pathology technology startup SigTuple’s $5.8m A round, India-based e-commerce logistics company XpressBees, India-based farming data provider AgroStar’s $10m B round, and India-based accommodation rental platform NestAway’s $50m return investment.

Such success is built on the people at the firm.

Karthik Prabhakar, IDG Ventures India

Karthik Prabhakar returns to the Rising Stars list with an enthusiastic nomination from IDGVI founder and chairman Sudhir Sethi, who said he was a “partner at the firm and again wins hands down without any doubt.

“He is a leader par excellence and takes on responsibilities beyond his formal role”.

Prabhakar is head of fundraising at IDGVI, while also co-leading marketing for the firm, having risen up the ranks after joining seven years ago as a summer intern after his PGDM (the Indian equivalent of an MBA) from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.

In fact, Sethi told news provider YourStory that Prabhakar had been the youngest promoted partner in the country. In nominating Prabhakar for the Global Corporate Venturing Rising Stars 2017 awards, Sethi said: “Karthik has led IDG Ventures India fundraising effort along with stellar investments in firms like NestAway and PlaySimple. In the short period of six years he is a partner at the firm and a role model to many in India on his ability to shoulder responsibility, work in teams and build trust with investors. Karthik is a glue to the firm and a true asset. We at IDG Ventures India are proud to have him with us “

Alongside fellow nominee Kamlesh Patre, Karthik has helped IDGVI onwards to a stellar year. Two new partnerships and a new fund closed, plus the 16 deals made.

January saw IDGVI close its third fund, worth $200m. Where IDGVI typically invests between the seed and expansion stage, the Economic Times reported that 25% of this new fund has been earmarked for later-stage investments, such as PolicyBazaar.

In March, IDGVI formed a partnership with accelerator and seed fund Axilor Ventures to invest in disruptive startups. The Frontier Tech Innovators initiative will seek to make investments in advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics, blockchain, drones, autonomous driving systems and augmented and virtual reality, focusing on startups that are under three years old.

In June, Unilever and Amazon partnered IDGVI through subsidiaries to create the IDG Ventures India 2017 Innovation Program, which aims to target startups in the consumer technology, software, healthcare technology and fintech sectors. Targeted startups are typically looking to raise seed or series A funding between $500,000 and $5m.

IDGVI’s fund received $10m from Unilever Ventures in November, with the money going towards consumer technologies and digital startups.

Prabhakar started his career at Intel, working there for four years as an engineer, before leaving to get his PGDM. He joined IDGVI in 2010, working his way up to associate by 2014, after a stint as senior analyst. Roles came quickly: senior associate for six months, then vice president and head of fundraising for a year, before his current role of director and head of fundraising.

He is a board observer for four companies – Living Consumer Products, from May 2015, LetsVenture, from January 2015, ULink BioEnergy (AgroStar), from August 2015, and Newgen Software, from February 2014. He is also a board member for NestAway and 2014 investment PlaySimple Games.

Kamlesh Patre, IDG Ventures India

Kamlesh Patre is the deputy chief financial officer at IDGVI. According to Sudhir Sethi, he “has contributed significantly to our fund and LP side of the venture business as well as the portfolio. He has taken care of all governance frameworks and legal.”

It is perhaps the nature of Rising Stars to focus on the deal-makers, much like sporting awards focus on the attackers, the flair players, and those who grab the headlines. Yet by nominating Kamlesh, industry doyen Sudhir is subtly pointing out that there is an awful lot that goes on away from the deal-making table.

Institutions rely on their foundations, and Kamlesh is the man to manage them for IDGVI. In fact, he is not just managing them – he is growing them. IDGVI had a stellar year in terms of fund growth, and signed off on the two major new partnerships.

An accountant by training, Kamlesh started as an assistant finance manager for Piramyd Retail in 2005, before moving to the same role at Future Capital Holdings in 2008.

He then spent nearly six years working in Mumbai for Headland Capital Partners (India) as their assistant director for finance. In 2015, he came onboard at IDGVI in Bangalore as their financial controller. In April 2016, he moved to his current role.