Stride Ventures, an Indian venture debt fund that has backed startups including HealthifyMe and Mensa Brands, has partnered with the Public Investment Fund (PIF), one of the world’s largest sovereign investors, according to an announcement.
Although Stride did not specify the fund for which it has garnered the support of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, media reports earlier stated that the venture debt fund is currently raising a $600-million fund.
The deal highlights growing international interest in Indian private credit platforms.
Founded in 2019, Stride has expanded from a domestic venture debt player into an international financial platform, with on-ground presence across India, the GCC, and the UK/Europe.
In a media statement, the firm said it has provided over $1.6 billion in credit to nearly 200 portfolio companies, including 20 unicorns, while evaluating more than 15,000 companies globally.
It currently manages seven funds with support from sovereign-backed strategies and a diversified investor base.
PIF, headquartered in Riyadh, is one of the world’s largest investors and supports long-term capital and private sector growth.
Its Jada Fund of Funds, which has invested in Stride, was launched in 2018 with a corpus of around $1 billion.
Since inception, Jada has deployed nearly $600 million across almost 50 funds, helping deepen institutional capital participation and support SME growth in the Kingdom.
Demand for venture debt in the country has risen over the past 2-3 years as startup founders are seeing it as a favourable option to meet their working capital needs.
To meet this growing demand, many firms such as BlackSoil, Edelweiss Wealth Management, Alteria Capital, Vivriti Asset Management, and Anicut Capital have launched new vehicles in the past couple of years.
