Ajay Kumar is a former Defence Secretary who has announced plans to invest in early-stage deep tech,  defense, and aerospace startups. The Mounttech Growth fund worth $29.9 million got approval from  the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India. ET mentioned that Kumar’s VC fund also  received a subscription of Rs 280 crore and is looking to invoke a green-shoe option to raise Rs 259  crore. 

The people close to this deal mentioned this first scheme of funds called Kavach. Ajay Kumar will be  the head chairman of the VC fund and the former senior telecom industry executive Ravi Sethia will  act as the chief executive. This fund is sponsored by the board member of Dalma Securities, Suryakant  Dalmia. The funding round had participation from several known entrepreneurs and domestic family  Offices as the Limited Partners. The main focus of the fund is to back early-stage startups in these  sectors. The development came just at the time when defense, aerospace, and deep tech sectors were  rising across India with the help of the central Government.  

The union cabinet recently approved an investment of Rs 10,372 crore for India AI Misson. The country  is focused on the “Make in India” scheme to reduce the reliance on imported defense equipment and  increase the export of defense equipment and technology. The government aims to seize a share of  2.1 trillion USD in the global defense market. The amount of deep tech startups increased to 3,000  across various sectors in India. The Indian government launched a new scheme to help MSMEs join  the ONDC platform. The Indian e-commerce market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19 percent and  reach the $400 billion mark by 2030. This highlights the promising startup ecosystem for investment in India. 

Inc42 mentioned in a report that the investments secured by Indian startups in the first six months of  2024 crossed 5.3 billion USD. Last month a Bengaluru startup GalaxEye Space secured a deal from iDEX  to design a multi-sensor processing system for miniature satellites that are capable of carrying a  maximum payload of 150 kg. Ministry of Defence also worked with Pixxel under its iDEX scheme to  manufacture miniature-sized multi-payload satellites for IAF. 

Conclusion: 

Former Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar floats VC fund to invest in early-stage deep tech, defense, and  aerospace startups. Kumar’s Mounttech Growth fund worth $29.9 million got approved by the market  regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India. The fund raised a subscription of Rs 280 crore and  an additional Rs 259 crore through the green-shoe option. The first scheme of funds is rumored to be  known as Kavach. The firm raised funds with the participation of several known entrepreneurs and  domestic family Offices as the Limited Partners. The development came just after the government  introduced various deals and schemes to help boost the Indian startup ecosystem. The country is  focused on the Make in India program to reduce the import of defense equipment while increasing  the export of defense equipment and technology.