After a long-drawn battle with the Tata Group, ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry has announced a venture fund to help startups, not just in India but globally. The firm, known by the name Mistry Ventures LLP, has been formed as a joint venture with Cyrus and his brother Shapoor Mistry, both contributing 50% each to the capital.
Beyond just investing in startups, Cyrus Mistry may lend his corporate experience to entrepreneurs in the areas of business strategy, etc. They have brought in Ashish Iyer to head the new venture. Iyer, with diverse experience across sectors has been a senior partner at Boston Consulting.
It is learnt that Mistry Ventures will involve itself in funding startups for their needs at the seed, early stage and later phases as well.
As already widely covered in the media, Ratan Tata had chosen Cyrus Mistry to head the Tata Group after him but the two developed serious differences culminating in the exit of Mistry. He felt aggrieved and went to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) with a litany of complaints against the Group. He has not been able to convince the authority on his claims.
Incidentally, it is not Cyrus and Shapoor Mistry who are getting into the venture fund space to promote startups. There are a few corporate companies keen to join the startup bandwagon and launch funds.
Leading construction company, Ajmera Group has made an announcement of setting up of a $10 million fund for assisting technology-based startups with finance. They have identified fintech and Software as a Service (SaaS) as areas they would be interested in.
These venture capital firms themselves are looking for investors who can entrust their funds with them for their requirements and if the startups utilize these funds to run their businesses efficiently, then it can definitely develop into a healthy ecosystem in India.