Quona Capital, a venture firm, raises $332m fund for financial inclusion investments in emerging markets; they discovered that despite the present environment for the industry, which includes fewer venture capital deals and layoffs, there is still a demand for fintech.
According to Ganesh Rengaswamy, co-founder and managing partner at Quona, the fund will look to invest in fintech and fintech adjacencies across sectors like supply chain, healthcare, education, digital commerce, and mobility. In contrast to its first two funds, the third fund will emphasise seed to Series A investments.
It will invest in tech firms that increase underserved consumers and businesses access to financial services in Latin America, India, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Mena.
Co-founding managing partners Jonathan Whittle, Ganesh Rengaswamy, and Monica Brand Engel established Quona Capital in 2015.
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“Since our earliest days, Quona has been dedicated to expanding the frontiers of financial inclusion — investing with conviction in markets and technology-enabled models, improving access and quality of financial services for the masses,” Brand Engel said in a statement. “Our prior fund performance, robust pipeline of inclusive fintech, and growing LP interest in our offerings are ringing endorsements of our view on the prospects of impact-oriented venture investing in emerging markets.”
We have a distinct perspective because we are business owners who have created and sold financial services and technology companies. We’re making something that truly depicts life as it is, and I’m Latina and the daughter of immigrants.
Quona Capital funds have made more than 65 investments since the company’s inception.
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Quona Capital Funds
Quona Capital funds have backed over 65 businesses, and the third fund will add another 25–30. While the company has taken a slight step back from consumer finance, it has bet everything on business-to-business.
Six businesses, including the decentralized finance protocol MoHash, the bitcoin savings and investing site Pillow, the Latin American marketplace linking platform nocnoc, and the Egyptian financial super app Khazna, have already received funding from the new capital.
Quona Capital has raised three funds totaling more than US$745 million since the company’s inception. Among the investors in Fund III are renowned worldwide asset managers, insurance companies, investment and commercial banks, university endowments, foundations, family offices, and development financing organizations. The majority of prior Quona fund investors who had invested in Fund III were joined by more than 20 new connections.
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Ganesh Rengaswamy Leads Quona Capital Funds Investments In India And Southeast Asia
An experienced businessman and venture capitalist, Ganesh Rengaswamy. He oversees Quona Capital’s investments in Southeast Asia and India.
Ganesh oversees Accion Frontier Investments’ operations in India prior to helping to form Quona. Ganesh was a general partner at Lok Capital before joining Accion, a venture growth fund that makes investments in social enterprises and financial inclusion. Ganesh previously worked at Unitus Inc., a worldwide company that invests in long-term strategies for financial inclusion, as the Asia Director. During these positions, Ganesh invested in and provided advice to a number of top banks and financial institutions, including Bandhan, Ujjivan, Equitas, IFMR/NorthenArc, Vistaar, and SKS/Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd.
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Details on Quona
Quona Capital is a fintech-focused venture capital firm that can increase access for underserved consumers and small businesses in developing markets like Latin America, India, Southeast Asia, Africa, and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The international partners of Quona are seasoned investors and businesspeople in both developing and emerging markets. They support business owners whose ventures have the potential to generate exceptional financial returns and advance ground-breaking innovation in financial inclusion for both consumers and SMEs.