Venture capital (VC) firm Elevation Capital on Friday launched a $400 million late-stage fund, ‘Elevation Holdings’ dedicated to supporting technology founders who are seeking to go public in India.
Known for its early bets on transformative Indian startups like Paytm, Swiggy, MakeMyTrip, Meesho and ShareChat, Elevation is now setting its sights on a new breed of scaled-up companies—profitable, category-leading and founder-led—that are preparing for IPO and beyond.
The new fund, housed under a separate vehicle called Elevation Holdings, is designed to offer permanent capital to startups one to three years ahead of their public listing. The goal: To partner with founders for the long haul, with holding periods of 10 to 15 years or more.
“This is a completely different strategy from our core early-stage fund,” says Mukul Arora, co-managing partner at Elevation Capital. “There, we typically come in at seed, Series A or Series B. With Elevation Holdings, we’re entering much later. Given how distinct the approach is, both in terms of investment philosophy and investor expectations, it made sense to structure it as a separate vehicle.”
Elevation’s move comes at a time when India’s startup ecosystem is maturing rapidly. Over the past few years, a critical mass of tech companies has emerged—profitable, defensible and built on strong fundamentals.
“For the first time, we’re seeing a large pool of category-leading companies that are not only profitable but also have significant headroom for growth,” says Arora. “Founders at this stage are looking for investors who can think long-term, much like venture partners. They want someone who can help them navigate the next S-curves of innovation, not just optimise for the next quarter.”
Elevation believes this moment mirrors the rise of India’s most enduring business institutions—only this time, they’re being built in tech.
The fund is designed with flexibility at its core. “We’ve intentionally built flexibility into this fund’s structure,” adds Mridul. “It doesn’t have to be a primary round—it could be secondary, ESOP buybacks or even founder warrant exercises. The idea is to curate the right kind of deal and get it done.”
Elevation is targeting companies that have already demonstrated category leadership, strong unit economics and defensible business models—often powered by network effects and brand strength. At the heart of this strategy is a belief in founder-led vision.
However, late-stage investing comes with its own set of challenges—chief among them, timing and pricing. “The later you enter, the higher the valuation,” Mridul notes. “So, it’s critical to strike the right balance and partner at a price that reflects long-term potential.”
Another challenge is identifying which companies are truly generational—those that will endure, compound value and continue to innovate. “We believe we have a strong right to win here,” Mridul adds. “Having seen these journeys play out across our portfolio and through close observation of other founders, we’re confident in our ability to pick the right partners.”
Elevation Holdings plans to make high-conviction, concentrated investments, with typical cheque sizes ranging from $25 million to $40 million per company. They have made their first investment of about $28 million in Spinny, a full-stack used-car platform and one of Elevation’s existing portfolio companies.
“We led Spinny’s Series A back in 2018,” says Mridul. “It’s a great example of everything we’ve spoken about—a clear market leader in the used-car space, deeply customer-obsessed, and led by a young, ambitious founder in Neeraj. The market still has massive headroom for growth.”