EXCLUSIVE: Peak XV’s Secret to Success Exposed
The largest India-focused venture fund, Peak XV, has been quietly raking in a whopping $1.2 billion in exits since its break-up with Sequoia last year, insiders reveal. But is their dominance in the region just a result of clever financial maneuvering or is something more sinister at play?
Sources close to the matter claim that the firm has sold stakes in over a dozen portfolio companies, including food delivery giant Zomato, cosmetics retailer Mamaearth, and spam protection firm Truecaller. But what’s truly shocking is that they’ve also made off with significant gains from secondary transactions and M&A deals in private startups, like K12 Techno, Pocket Aces, and PingSafe.
So, what’s driving Peak XV’s remarkable success? Could it be the booming Indian stock market, which is trading at a significant premium to other emerging markets? Or is it the firm’s aggressive investment approach, which has seen them become the go-to launchpad for young startups in India and Southeast Asia?
Critics argue that Peak XV’s Surge program is simply a clever marketing ploy to attract naive startups and rake in returns on the cheap. "It’s all about creaming the crop," says a venture capitalist with knowledge of the industry. "They’re offering sweet deals to get the best companies and then selling them off to the highest bidder."
But Peak XV isn’t just making money through exits. The firm has also been launching perpetual funds backed by its own partners, a move that has sparked controversy and raised questions about its accountability to investors.
So, what’s next for Peak XV? With an additional $2 billion in the bank and over 400 companies in its portfolio, the sky’s the limit for this aggressive venture fund. But at what cost to the startups it’s supposedly backing?
The answer, it seems, is a mystery waiting to be unraveled. One thing is certain, however: Peak XV’s dominance in the region is unlikely to be challenged anytime soon.
