Stride Ventures raises $100 million for new-age business loans

Stride Ventures, which provides debt capital to new-age companies, said on Tuesday that it has raised $100 million (around Rs 820 crore) for loans.

This is the first closing of the firm’s third venture debt fund, and the company aims to raise another $100 million as part of the fund, according to a statement.

The first close was achieved within four months of obtaining a license for the third fund, the statement said, adding that institutional investors including banks, insurance companies and family offices have backed the fund.

The company has more than 100 clients including Sugar Cosmetics, Mensa Brands, Exotel and has so far sanctioned more than Rs 5,000 crore to the Indian startup ecosystem, he said.

The company statement says that the Indian venture debt market is expected to witness an annual deployment of more than USD 3 billion by 2025.

“We see rising demand for risky debt as startups look to optimize their capital structure and preserve capital for future rounds,” said managing partner Apoorva Sharma.