About Desai Ventures
Desai Ventures is a venture capital firm founded in 2022. It is primarily based out of Ahmedabad, India. As of Oct 2026, Desai Ventures is an active investor, having invested in 47 companies, with 5 new investments in the last 12 months. It primarily invests in Seed round in India based startups. Its investments are spread across a wide range of sectors from Consumer to Enterprise Applications and Retail. Most recently it participated in the $***** Seed round of Blaze Energy Technologies Overall, Desai Ventures portfolio has seen 1 unicorn and 2 acquisitions, namely Licious, Design Cafe and Square Off. A lot of funds co-invest with Desai Ventures, with names like Shaival Desai sharing a substantial percentage of its portfolio. Desai Ventures has team of 4 people including 2 partners.Key Metrics
Team Members
Portfolio Sectors
Portfolio Locations
Rounds of Entry
Seed & Series A
Portfolio Acquisitions
Portfolio Unicorns
Portfolio Soonicorns
Deals in last 12 months
Desai Ventures' List of Top Investments
Desai Ventures has a portfolio of 47 companies, one of which is a Unicorn. Their most notable investments are in Kristal AI and Treeconomy.Their portfolio spans across India, United States, United Kingdom and 2 more locations. They have invested in Consumer, Enterprise Applications, Retail and 22 other sectors, across stages such as Seed, Series A stages. Here is the list of top investments by Desai Ventures:
1. Licious
Retailer of fresh meat products available for online consumer purchase. This business facilitates the digital procurement of various raw meat items. Customers select products through an online interface for delivery. The operation focuses on the distribution of perishable food goods directly to households.
Key facts about Licious
- Founded Year: 2015
- Location: Bengaluru (India)
- Annual Revenue: ₹1,000+ Cr as on Mar 31, 2026
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series G
- Total Funding till date: $490M
- Employee Count: 2,828 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Amansa Capital, Multiples Alternate Asset Management and 67 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series G, Sep 21, 2023, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
2. Petpooja
All-in-one software powering SME growth with POS, payroll, and more. They offer integrated solutions for small and medium businesses, specializing in restaurant POS software, payroll management, GST billing, invoice processing, and task automation. Their ecosystem empowers SMEs through industry expertise and creative problem-solving, driving efficiency and unlocking new possibilities. They provide solutions for attendance tracking, payroll management, leave monitoring, inventory management, and task management. They focus on simplicity, continuous innovation, transparent pricing, and dedicated support. Their offerings include POS, billing, inventory management, online ordering, CRM, menu management, and reporting. They cater to various outlet types, including fine dining, QSR, cafes, and cloud kitchens. They are a technology company offering SaaS solutions.
Key facts about Petpooja
- Founded Year: 2011
- Location: Ahmedabad (India)
- Annual Revenue: ₹100 - ₹500 Cr as on Mar 31, 2025
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series C
- Total Funding till date: $27M
- Employee Count: 1,784 as on Aug 31, 2025
- Investors: Dharana, Gujarat Venture Finance and 34 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series C, Sep 26, 2025, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
3. Leverage Edu
Company is an AI-native global talent mobility & upskilling platform, helping students and professionals from emerging markets access education and employment opportunities globally. The company has helped 200,000+ individuals over the last 9 years, channelled over $1 billion in forex, aggregated $500 million in education loans, secured 12,000+ student-housing beds, and hosts over a 1000 companies every year at job fairs for its alumni worldwide. For enterprise partners, Leverage Edu also offers LE AI, an AI product suite spanning coaching, interview readiness and quality compliance. The company has also more recently expanded into workforce mobility through Leverage Careers, and into industry-integrated online programmes and certifications through Leverage Upskilling.
Key facts about Leverage Edu
- Founded Year: 2017
- Location: Noida (India)
- Annual Revenue: ₹100 - ₹500 Cr as on Mar 31, 2025
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series D
- Total Funding till date: $64.6M
- Employee Count: 928 as on May 01, 2026
- Investors: BlackSoil, Avendus and 146 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series D, Jun 25, 2026, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
4. Mokobara
Chains providing luggage, bags, and travel accessories. The company offers a range of travel gear including suitcases, trolley bags, backpacks, briefcases, and various lifestyle accessories designed for travel and daily use.
Key facts about Mokobara
- Founded Year: 2019
- Location: Bengaluru (India)
- Annual Revenue: ₹100 - ₹500 Cr as on Mar 31, 2025
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series C
- Total Funding till date: $33.6M
- Employee Count: 324 as on May 31, 2026
- Investors: Sauce, Chona Family Office and 61 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series C, Sep 05, 2026, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
5. Pee Safe
Platform offering personal hygiene and wellness products. It offers a diverse selection of items catering to menstrual care, intimate hygiene, toilet hygiene, and grooming needs. Products include sanitary pads, menstrual cups, intimate washes, toilet seat sanitizers, and grooming tools.
Key facts about Pee Safe
- Founded Year: 2017
- Location: Gurugram (India)
- Annual Revenue: ₹50 - ₹100 Cr as on Mar 31, 2025
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series C
- Total Funding till date: $22M
- Employee Count: 140 as on Aug 31, 2025
- Investors: 9Syndicate, Aeroflex Enterprises and 17 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series C, Jan 14, 2026, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
Desai Ventures' Year-on-Year Investment Trends
Desai Ventures has invested in 47 companies over the last 5 years, with an average of 2 new investments annually in the last 5 years. In 2025, it made 2 investments, while as of Oct 2026, it has made 4 investments in this year. Its most recent first time investment was in Blaze Energy Technologies and most recent follow-on round was in Frendy.Year | No. of Investments | ||
|---|---|---|---|
1st Round | Follow-on | Total | |
2026 (YTD) | 4 | 0 | 4 |
2025 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
2024 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
2023 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
2022 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
2021 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
Desai Ventures' Investments by Stage
Desai Ventures has made 12 investments in Seed stage with an average round size of $2.69M and 3 investments in Series A stage with an average round size of $5.47M.Stage of entry | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Seed | 12 |
Series A | 3 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Desai Ventures' Investments by Sector
Desai Ventures has a diverse portfolio, with companies operating in the Environment Tech, Sustainability Tech, Retail, Consumer and Energy Tech. Notably, it has invested in 38 Tech companies, 27 Enterprise (B2B) companies, 21 Consumer (B2C) companies and at least 11 companies focusing on Software.Sector | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Environment Tech | 6 |
Sustainability Tech | 6 |
Retail | 5 |
Consumer | 4 |
Energy Tech | 4 |
Others | 12 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Desai Ventures' Investments by Geography
Desai Ventures has made most investments in India (6), followed by United Kingdom where it has made 3 investments.Country | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
India | 6 |
United Kingdom | 3 |
United States | 3 |
Germany | 1 |
Singapore | 1 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Desai Ventures' recent investments
Desai Ventures has made 4 investments in 2026 so far. Blaze Energy Technologies and Ki-13 are the latest among them.Here are the most recent investments by Desai Ventures:
Filter this listDate | Company | Location | Round Details | Round Amount | Co-Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Oct 06, 2026 | United States | Seed | 2828 | [+4] | |
Sep 02, 2026 | - | Seed | 3304 | [+2] | |
Apr 20, 2026 | United States | Seed | 1497 | [+1] | |
Mar 12, 2026 | Germany | Seed | 1723 | ||
Nov 05, 2025 | United States | Seed | 5262 | [+2] |
Unicorns in Desai Ventures' Portfolio
Desai Ventures has 1 unicorn in its portfolio - Licious. The most recent unicorn in their portfolio is Licious which became a unicorn in 2021, 5 years before Desai Ventures first invested in it.Here is a list of unicorns in Desai Ventures' portfolio:
Tracxn Score | Company | Short Description | Founded year | Sector | Location | Company Stage | First Investment/ Acquisition Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
84 | Retailer of fresh meat products available for online consumer purchase | 2015 | Bengaluru | Series G | cmyddd{ |
Acquired companies in Desai Ventures' Portfolio
2 companies from Desai Ventures' portfolio have been acquired. The most recent acquisition was Design Cafe in Sep 2024 by HomeLane for $*****.Here are Desai Ventures' portfolio companies that got acquired most recently:
Company | Acquisition Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Sep 25, 2024 | - | - | 7940 | |
Oct 05, 2022 | - | - | 6320 |
Team profile of Desai Ventures
Desai Ventures has a team of 4 members including 2 Partners located in United Kingdom. Desai Ventures' team does not sit on the board of any company as of now.Co-investors of Desai Ventures
Over the past 5 years, 264 investors have co-invested in Desai Ventures's portfolio companies. This includes funds and angels.
- Invested before Desai Ventures: Sauce, Ashish Goel and 71 others have invested in rounds before Desai Ventures. There is 1 company where Sauce has invested before Desai Ventures and 1 company where Ashish Goel has invested before Desai Ventures.
- Top Co-investors of Desai Ventures: 103 investors entered a company along with Desai Ventures. These include investors like Shaival Desai (2 companies).
- Invested after Desai Ventures: A total of 88 investors have invested in Desai Ventures's portfolio after their investments. Top Investors include Alteria Capital (2 companies), Chona Family Office (2 companies) and Saama (1 company).
Recent News related to Desai Ventures
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Ki 13 Raises $5M in Seed FundingFinSMEs•Sep 02, 2026•Triple Impact Ventures, Desai Ventures, Global IoT Technology Ventures, Ki-13 and 2 others
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NOC Energy Raises $2.7M in Seed FundingFinSMEs•Apr 20, 2026•Noc Energy, Desai Ventures, 360 Capital Partners, SOSV
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Airmo Raises €5M Seed FundingFinSMEs•Apr 13, 2026•Hypernova, kopa ventures, Desai Ventures, PI LABS and 6 others
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Flux XII Raises $3.95M in Seed FundingFinSMEs•Nov 05, 2025•Flux XII, Desai Ventures, WARF, Gener8tor and 1 other
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France’s Nutropy Raises €7M for Industrialization of Animal-Free Dairy ProteinsVegan Business Magazine•Oct 24, 2025•Nutropy, Wyngate, Beta Lab, Zero Carbon Capital and 8 others
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Green Angel Ventures Leads £1.1m Fund Raising for AnzenAngel News•Jun 20, 2025•Anzen, Green Angel Ventures, Desai Ventures, Sustainable Ventures and 2 others
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Frendy raises Rs 2 crore in debt from UC Inclusive CreditTechiexpert•Jul 16, 2024•Frendy, Unitus Capital, UC Inclusive Credit, Auxano and 4 others
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Frendy raised $2 M Bridge funding from Desai Ventures, othersIncubees•Dec 26, 2023•Frendy, Desai Ventures, Auxano, AT Capital and 2 others
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Retail Store Network Frendy Raises $2 Mn To Expand Its Technology StackInc42•Nov 27, 2023•Frendy, Auxano, AT Capital, Salarpuria Group and 2 others
