As a follow up to our earlier story on online and print media company agencyfaqs being funded by early stage venture fund Seedfund, I spoke to Pravin Gandhi, Partner with Seedfund a short while ago. Excerpts from the interview:
How much stake have you picked up in agencyfaqs and for how much?
I can’t disclose how much, but we have taken a minority interest in the company.
This isn’t exactly a seed funding for a fund that is focused on early stage investments…
It is a growth stage investment. The investee chose us because he believed that we can add value. For Srikant, 2000 to 2005 was a trying time. Now that the Internet economy is getting somewhat more robust, this is the time to grow by leaps and bounds. We believe we can contribute. It’s not an incubation or a seed funding, but it is within our investment size and in our mandate for investments.
Where do you see opportunity for agencyfaqs?
The opportunities are many. agencyfaqs has significant eyebals from the community they address. So it can be leveraged, for for example, for events. The same model can be exported to other markets like Singapore and the Middle East. We strongly believe that there’s enough to do within the country as well.
When do you see an exit?
Within three to five years. our fundamental premise for most of our investments is that within 24 months the company should break even. We see upwards of 50 to 70 percent growth for agencyfaqs, year-on-year.
Where do you see most of that growth coming from – Internet, mobile, print…?
I believe most of it will come from the Internet and events
And what kind of an exit do you see possible?
Well it’s not possible to predict what will happen in three to four years. I don’t see an IPO as an option for an Internet company, so it can be strategic acquisition, or a larger fund picks up stake.
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