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Growth Sense Venture Fund on Thursday said it has got approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) as a Category-1 Angel Fund for investments into early stage startups.

A Category-1 AIF means that the fund primarily invests in sectors that are considered to be socially or economically beneficial by the government such as social ventures, small and medium enterprises.

The fund has a corpus of Rs 100 crore and is sector agnostic, which helps the company broaden its scope of its investment.

Growth Sense, the investment manager for the fund, has made over 88 investments to date with six startups showing over 100% IRR (internal rate of return). IRR is a metric that is used to calculate the profitability of an investment.

“Receiving SEBI approval marks an exciting milestone for Growth Sense Venture Fund. This fund allows us to channel investor capital into startups that are not only poised for growth but are delivering real value to the Indian economy. Our team is dedicated to supporting India’s most promising startups with capital, mentorship, and strategic resources,” said Sanjay Sarda, Co-founder of Growth Sense.

The fund aims to provide startups with access to partnerships, guidance, and operational support and focuses on high-potential ventures.

The firm’s current portfolio includes, edtech startup Klassroom, hostel booking platform Homversity, and pet service aggregator platform Petmojo, among others.

Additionally, the Growth Sense ecosystem includes associate companies such as founder-investor marketplace Growth91, technology solution provider Growth Metaverse, branding and digital marketing service provider Growth Alpha, legal and regulatory service provider Growth Compliances and cybersecurity product INVIdata.

The firm’s fund is open for investment and allows individuals with a certain level of net worth and corporations to contribute.