Pune | 22nd September 2021: Pentathlon Ventures, an early-stage B2B SaaS focused VC firm, announces final close of its first Fund, which has secured investments totalling INR 76 crore. The Fund has been oversubscribed. Pentathlon plans to invest in 20+ B2B SaaS start-ups in a year and make investments between INR 75 lakh and INR 3 crore on an average.
The firm’s investment strategy is based on a fundamental, value-oriented approach. It invests in companies that have a proven product market fit, possess strong intellectual property, and display the potential for market disruption. As such, the Pentathlon fund serves as a critical link between the seed round and series A/B funding.
“We appreciate the confidence and trust our investors have shown in our team and strategy. Not to mention the unwavering support of the brilliant entrepreneurs who continue to partner with us,” says, Gireendra Kasmalkar, Managing Partner, Pentathlon Ventures.
All the managing partners at Pentathlon are ‘founders turned funders’ and take an active role in all material aspects of the early-stage business building process. Tech entrepreneurs turn to the fund’s founders for their deep domain knowledge, extensive global reach, and hard-won experience in scaling various tech ventures.
One of the fund’s primary goals is to identify and collaborate with those who exhibit the ‘DNA of Scale’. Start-ups who possess this unique trait show a deep understanding of their market as well as their limitations. Their founders, too, are dynamic and innovative, and they operate with agility, relentlessness, and speed.
“We are proud to say companies in our portfolio showed great resilience during the recent pandemic downturn,” says Saurabh Lahoti, Managing Partner, Pentathlon Ventures. “Their solid performances coupled with the consistency of our investment strategy are what I think ultimately struck a chord with a world-class pool of investors,” he adds.
Started by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, this Pune-based fund will continue to focus on early-stage B2B SaaS start-ups. Industry veterans Gireendra Kasmalkar (Ideas to Impacts), Sandeep Chawda (formerly MD at Globant India), Madhukar Bhatia (co-founder Sapience Analytics), Saurabh Lahoti (has run 3 early-stage funds in past), Hemant Joshi (Cofounder Sapience Analytics), and Shashank Deshpande (co-founder Clarice Technologies) are partners in Pentathlon Ventures.
Supporting the partners in this regard is a stellar board of advisors, including industry stalwarts such as Shirish Deodhar (Serial entrepreneur), Martin Umaran (Globant), Mohan Kumar (Avataar Ventures), Pravin Bhalerao (Pranitya Wealth), and Abhishant Pant (The Fintech meetup).
