Arāya Ventures, a London-based venture capital firm backed by Bridgerton actress Charithra Chandran, has completed the second close of its Arāya Super Angel Fund, reaching £18.2 million of its £20 million target. This milestone includes a £5 million commitment from British Business Investments, a subsidiary of the British Business Bank through its Regional Angels Programme, underscoring the fund’s potential to invigorate the UK’s startup ecosystem.
The fund’s investors comprise a diverse group of influential figures, including fund of funds Saarthi Capital, former Credit Suisse CEO Phil Cutts, former Browns CEO Holli Rogers, successful entrepreneurs like Rachel Pendered and Dr. Raoul-Gabriel Urma, venture capital investors such as Niraj Pabari of Giano Capital and former COO of Precede Capital Partners Daljit Sandhu, as well as family offices from the UK and the Middle East. This mix of investors enhances the fund’s ability to provide comprehensive support to its portfolio companies.
A community-powered investment approach
The Arāya Super Angel Fund is designed to invest in up to 60 innovative pre-seed and seed-stage startups over the next four years. The fund focuses on sectors that are redefining modern living and working paradigms, including healthtech, fintech, commerce, and the future of work.
This community-powered model not only provides financial backing but also offers strategic support, leveraging a network of investors, industry experts, and proprietary scout networks to add substantial value to portfolio companies.
Leadership with a proven track record
Founder and Managing Partner Rupa Popat brings over two decades of experience as an entrepreneur and investment banker to Arāya Ventures. Her successful track record includes exit offers from prominent entities such as Google Ventures and Unilever Ventures. Popat aims to leverage her extensive network and expertise to provide immediate value to Arāya’s portfolio founders.
Promising landscape for UK startups
The announcement of the fund’s second close comes at a time when the UK’s tech sector is experiencing remarkable growth. As of 2024, the sector has produced 171 unicorns, with a combined market valuation of $1.1 trillion. The UK’s leadership in AI is particularly noteworthy, boasting 1,800 venture capital-backed AI startups and 20 AI unicorns.
Portfolio of investments
Arāya Ventures has demonstrated a keen eye for identifying and supporting promising startups across various sectors. Notable investments include:
- Research Grid: A company specializing in business productivity software, aiming to streamline operations and enhance efficiency.
- Monk Global: Operating in the commercial products sector, Monk Global focuses on delivering innovative solutions to modern business challenges.
- Trumpet: A business productivity software company dedicated to optimizing workflow and communication within organizations.
- FLOWN: An education and training services provider, FLOWN is committed to enhancing learning experiences through innovative platforms.
- Lapse: A social platform software company that offers unique solutions to connect and engage users.
- Code First Girls: Focused on educational and training services, this company empowers women by providing coding education and career opportunities in tech.
- Moneybox: A financial software firm that helps users save and invest for their future through a user-friendly app.
- Jude: Operating in the healthcare sector, Jude offers innovative solutions to improve patient care and medical services.
- Try Your Best: A media and information services company that provides platforms for user engagement and content sharing.
- Sooper Books: A publishing company delivering engaging and educational content for children and young readers.
These investments reflect Arāya Ventures’ commitment to supporting startups that are poised to make significant impacts in their respective industries.
One portfolio founder noted, “Since investing in October, Arāya has already made valuable introductions to prospective investors and customers and has been advising us on our growth levers and strategy, following our explosive ARR growth last year.”
Rupa Popat, co-founder of Arāya Ventures said: “This is Arāya Ventures’ debut fund and I’m incredibly proud of what we are able to offer both our investors and founders. As a former founder turned investor, I’ve been on both sides of the table and I know that for most early-stage founders, whilst capital is important, it’s also about the additional value and support that investors can provide. And my goal is for us to be operationally impactful to founders with access to our deep and extensive networks.”
Adam Kelly, Managing Director, British Business Investments said: ‘’We are excited to partner with Rupa and Arāya Ventures. The Super Angel Fund is a great example of leveraging angel expertise in a formal committed structure which works well for investee companies. The Regional Angels Programme plays an important role in reducing imbalances in access to early-stage equity finance for UK smaller businesses. By co-investing alongside Arāya’s Super Angel Fund, we are bringing together finance, business experience and skills to support the development of high-growth smaller businesses across the UK.”
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