When was Citadel Ventures founded?

Citadel Ventures was founded in 2005.

Where is Citadel Ventures' headquarters located?

Citadel Ventures' headquarters is located in Palo Alto (United States).

How many companies has Citadel Ventures invested in?

Citadel Ventures has invested in 3 companies, including UpGrad & Crofarm.

Which companies has Citadel Ventures invested in lately?

UpGrad & Biryani By Kilo are the latest investments by Citadel Ventures.

How many exits has Citadel Ventures been involved in?

Citadel Ventures' portfolio has seen 1 acquisition.

How many unicorns are there in Citadel Ventures' portfolio?

There is 1 unicorn in Citadel Ventures' portfolio.

Citadel Ventures - 2026 Investor Profile, Portfolio, Team & Investment Trends

Q: How big is Citadel Ventures' investment team?

Citadel Ventures has a team of 3.

Citadel Ventures, an accelerator and incubator program founded in 2005, is based in Palo Alto, United States. With a presence in 1 country, it has supported around 3 startups in sectors like Food and Agriculture Tech, EdTech. As of Jul 2026, Citadel Ventures has 1 unicorn under its belt and has witnessed 1 portfolio exit. Most notable companies in its portfolio are UpGrad, Crofarm and Biryani By Kilo. The program is backed by a team of 3 people who primarily support Seed startups based in India. Its latest investment was a $42.6M Series F round in UpGrad on Apr 23, 2026, which also saw participation from Temasek and IFC.

Key Metrics

Founded Year

2005

Location

Palo Alto, United States

Portfolio Companies

UpGrad, Crofarm & 1 more

Sectors of Investment

Food and Agriculture Tech, EdTech & 2 more

Stages of Investment

Seed & Series F

Locations of Investment

India

Unicorn in Portfolio

UpGrad

View Citadel Ventures's full profile

Citadel Ventures has a portfolio of 3 companies, one of which is a Unicorn. Their most notable investments include UpGrad and Crofarm.Their portfolio spans across and India. They have invested in Food and Agriculture Tech, EdTech, Retail and 1 other sectors, across stages such as Seed, Series F stages. Here is the list of all investments by Citadel Ventures:

1. UpGrad

Higher education and upskilling platform. It provides online degree programs, professional certifications, and career transition courses in partnership with universities and industry experts. It partners with universities and industry organizations to provide structured learning pathways for students and working professionals, focusing on career advancement, job readiness, and lifelong learning through technology-enabled education.

Key facts about UpGrad

Founded Year: 2015
Location: Mumbai (India)
Annual Revenue: ₹1,000+ Cr as on Mar 31, 2025
Valuation: $*****
Stage: Series F
Total Funding till date: $372M
Employee Count: 7,033 as on Mar 31, 2026
Investors: Temasek, IFC Asset Management Company and 53 Others
Latest Funding Round: Series F, Apr 23, 2026, $*****
Highlight: Editors' Pick

2. Crofarm

B2B supply chain for fresh farm produce. The service streamlines the supply chain, ensuring high-quality products reach consumers quickly. It utilizes technology to manage orders, track deliveries, and maintain transparency throughout the process.

Key facts about Crofarm

Founded Year: 2016
Location: Gurugram (India)
Annual Revenue: ₹100 - ₹500 Cr as on Mar 31, 2024
Valuation: $*****
Stage: Series B
Total Funding till date: $41.7M
Employee Count: 66 as on May 31, 2026
Investors: WestBridge Capital, Smile Group and 72 Others
Latest Funding Round: Series B, Aug 03, 2023, $*****
Highlight: Editors' Pick

3. Biryani By Kilo

Internet first restaurant offering on demand food delivery for consumers. The platform delivers biryani, kebabs, beverages, breads, desserts, ice-creams, and curries in multiple cities. It also has offline branches.

Key facts about Biryani By Kilo

Founded Year: 2015
Location: Gurugram (India)
Annual Revenue: ₹100 - ₹500 Cr as on Mar 31, 2025
Last Known Valuation: $*****
Stage: Acquired
Total Funding till date: $67.1M
Employee Count: 1,579 as on Aug 31, 2025
Investors: Smile Group, Trifecta Capital and 112 Others
Latest Funding Round: Series C, Nov 11, 2024, $*****
Highlight: Acquired

Citadel Ventures has invested in 3 companies over the last 10 years, with an average of 0 new investment annually in the last 10 years. As of Apr 2026, it has made 1 investment in this year. Its most recent first time investment was in UpGrad and most recent follow-on round was in Biryani By Kilo.

View all investments by Citadel Ventures

Citadel Ventures has made 2 investments in Seed stage with an average round size of $504K and 1 investment in Series F stage with an average round size of $42.6M.

Here are Citadel Ventures' investments by stage:

Stage of entry	No. of Investments
Seed	2
Series F	1

Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments

View all investments by Citadel Ventures

Citadel Ventures has a diverse portfolio, with companies operating in the EdTech, Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Tech and Retail. Notably, it has invested in 3 Consumer (B2C) companies, 2 Enterprise (B2B) companies, 2 Software companies and 2 companies focusing on Tech.

Here are Citadel Ventures' investments by sector:

Sector	No. of Investments
EdTech	1
Food and Agriculture	1
Food and Agriculture Tech	1
Retail	1

Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments

View all investments by Citadel Ventures

Citadel Ventures has made most investments in India (3).

View all investments by Citadel Ventures

Citadel Ventures has made 1 investments in 2026 so far - UpGrad.

Here are the most recent investments by Citadel Ventures:

Filter this list

Date	Company	Location	Round Details	Round Amount	Co-Investors
Apr 23, 2026	UpGrad	India	Series F	8407	Temasek [+22]
Oct 27, 2017	Biryani By Kilo	India	Seed	5483	Startup Equity Partners [+19]
Jun 07, 2017	Crofarm	India	Seed	3001	Rajan Anandan [+10]
Feb 17, 2017	Biryani By Kilo	India	Seed	2342	Shyam Sunder Pulijal [+10]
Dec 30, 2016	Biryani By Kilo	India	Seed	1495	GrayCell Ventures [+16]

See more recent investments made by Citadel Ventures

Citadel Ventures has 1 unicorn in its portfolio - UpGrad. The most recent unicorn in their portfolio is UpGrad which became a unicorn in 2021, 4 years before Citadel Ventures first invested in it.

Here is a list of unicorns in Citadel Ventures' portfolio:

Filter this list

Tracxn Score	Company	Short Description	Founded year	Sector	Location	Company Stage	First Investment/ Acquisition Details
73	UpGrad	Higher education and upskilling platform	2015	EdTech	Mumbai	Series F	lko{qxo

View more details about unicorns in Citadel Ventures' portfolio

1 company from Citadel Ventures' portfolio has been acquired. The most recent acquisition was Biryani By Kilo in Apr 2025 by Devyani International for $*****.

Here are Citadel Ventures' portfolio companies that got acquired most recently:

Filter this list

Company	Acquisition Date	First Invested on	First Round of Investment	Round Size
Biryani By Kilo	Apr 24, 2025	Dec 30, 2016	Seed	2852

View all acquired companies in Citadel Ventures' portfolio

Citadel Ventures has a team of 3 members including 2 Partners located in United States and Singapore. Citadel Ventures' team does not sit on the board of any company as of now.

View team details of Citadel Ventures

Over the past 10 years, 187 investors have co-invested in Citadel Ventures's portfolio companies. This includes funds and angels.

Invested before Citadel Ventures: Ashish Gupta, Temasek and 30 others have invested in rounds before Citadel Ventures. There are 2 companies where Ashish Gupta has invested before Citadel Ventures and 1 company where Temasek has invested before Citadel Ventures.
Top Co-investors of Citadel Ventures: 45 investors entered a company along with Citadel Ventures. These include investors like Nueva Capital (1 company).
Invested after Citadel Ventures: A total of 110 investors have invested in Citadel Ventures's portfolio after their investments. Top Investors include Vinay Mittal (2 companies) and Smile Group (2 companies).