NABVENTURES, the venture capital arm of the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), has announced the first close of NABVENTURES Fund II with commitments of INR 450 crore. The fund is targeting a total corpus of INR 1,500 crore, including a green-shoe option, and NABARD is the anchor investor.

The release was datelined New Delhi, 8 October 2026, and was carried by several outlets on 9 October. It does not name any limited partner other than NABARD, give the size of individual investments or set a date for the final close.

What Fund II will invest in

Fund II will invest in early-stage and growth-stage enterprises that use technology, scalable business models and sustainable solutions to address problems in agricultural value chains and rural markets. The release lists agri-tech, food and agribusiness, rural fintech, climate-smart solutions, supply chain and logistics, and other innovations driving rural transformation.

Beyond growth capital, NABVENTURES says the fund will use NABARD’s nationwide presence and sector expertise to help portfolio companies scale. NABARD’s chairman said the fund will look for enterprises that deliver both commercial outcomes and social impact, with a focus on sustainability, climate resilience, financial inclusion and livelihood creation.

In the release, NABARD chairman Dr. Shaji Krishnan V described the first close of Fund II at INR 450 crore as an important milestone.

Track record and funding climate

NABVENTURES was established on 23 April 2018 as a wholly owned subsidiary of NABARD, according to YourStory. Besides Fund II, it manages NABVENTURES Fund I and the AgriSURE fund, and its earlier funds have collectively backed 23 enterprises, the release says. YourStory and Indian Startup News name supply chain platform Unnati, farm-to-consumer brand Eggoz, snacking company Beyond Snack and rural fintech Jai Kisan among its portfolio companies.

The AgriSURE Fund for Start-ups and Rural Enterprises is described on the NABVENTURES website as a SEBI-registered, close-ended Category II alternative investment fund sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and NABARD, with NABVENTURES Limited as investment manager.

The new vehicle arrives after a weak period for agritech fundraising. YourStory reported that Indian agritech startups raised $202 million across 36 deals in 2025, down 25% from $269 million in 2024; it did not name the source of those figures.

TAD’s reading

  • For founders: NABARD’s anchor commitment adds a domestic institutional backer for rural fintech, logistics and food businesses at a time when, on YourStory’s figures, overall agritech deal flow has shrunk. Until ticket sizes are published, it is unclear whether Fund II will mainly fill early-stage gaps or compete in larger growth rounds.
  • For co-investors: With only NABARD named, the distance between INR 450 crore committed and the INR 1,500 crore target is the number to watch. Which banks, insurers or development lenders join before the final close will show how much other capital follows the anchor.
  • For agribusinesses selling into rural markets: The promise to use NABARD’s nationwide presence could be worth more than the cheque to companies whose main cost is reaching rural customers, but the release does not say how that support will work in practice.