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The money will be invested through GHV Accelerator, which is on track to launch a US$54M fund for startups in health-tech, fintech, adtech and B2B marketplaces

Makoto Takano, Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Japan and former MD of PIMCO, a global investment management firm, has committed to invest INR 30 crore (US$4.6 million) in Indian startups.

The funds will be invested through Noida-based GHV Accelerator.

With this commitment, GHV is on track to launch a INR 350 crore (US$54 million) fund, which aims to invest in the health-tech, fintech, adtech and B2B marketplaces verticals.

Also Read: Japan’s Nihon Kotsu invests in MyTaxiIndia to help it crack what Ola or Uber couldn’t yet

Takano, who is also CEO of Atomixmedia and MT Partners K.K, is visiting India this month to meet startups, policy makers and entrepreneurs.

“I visited India in 2016 in order to understand the Indian market better and the potential it has to offer. I observed the scope of development and innovation in the country, and witnessed the innovation being done as of now,” said Takano. “I believe that with the intellectual capital India has, along with the strong innovation empowerment ecosystem where GHV is playing a key role, India is poised to be one of the leading economies especially in the new innovation space. This seems to be the perfect time to empower innovation in India, and I found a great partner in GHV.”

In the past, Takano has held senior roles at Goldman Sachs and Daiwa Securities. He is also establishing a new VC fund, called D4V, in association with Ideo, a Palo Alto-headquartered international design and consulting firm.

Started in 2014 by Vikram Upadhyaya, a serial entrepreneur and member of Indian Angel Network, GHV is an active accelerator-cum-investor. The firm has incubated and invested in over half-a-dozen startups, including MyTaxiIndia, FitMein, AdurCup, Applop, Pindrop Music, PickMyLaundry and RoadGods. GHV has been leveraging the strong growth in the India-Japan collaboration to bring in investors from Japan to invest in its portfolio firms.

GHV has also partnered with World Innovation Lab (WiL) and MT Partners to provide funding for Indian companies. Earlier, WiL, one of the largest Japanese VC funds based out of Silicon Valley, had committed money to invest in GHV’s portfolio companies.

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