Naren Gupta was a venture capitalist who co-founded a company to help plant Indian software companies on the world map. He was 73.
Gupta co-founded Integrated Systems, a software firm that was sold to Intel, after moving to the U.S. to pursue higher education. Gupta began looking at investment opportunities after leaving the firm.
He said that his introduction to venture capital and investment was accidental. I didn't have any plans to do it. I met lots of entrepreneurs and made investments because of the opportunity.
One of the earliest investments Gupta made was in an Indian startup, which against his urging agreed to an acquisition offer. The deal made Gupta realize that if he had a formal venture fund, his portfolio startups would be able to take longer-term bets.
I was interested in venture in India. In 2005 and 2006 he traveled and met many companies.
It was a big bet. There were very few startup in India at the time. The bet was that the solutions would be relevant to enterprises across the globe.
Technology does not follow political boundaries. We were able to mix the U.S. rules with the Indian talent to get things done. He said that India is very entrepreneurial at getting things done.
The fund he co-founded in 2006 is now $2 billion in assets. Postman, Olx, WhiteHat Jr., and edtech Unacademy are some of the promising startups that have been backed by Nexus.
Prior to IBM acquiring Red Hat, Gupta was a chairman of the board.
Several generations of Indian startups owe Gupta a debt of gratitude according to Sumanth Raghavendra.
He embodied everything positive that a founder looks for in an investor, always backing them when they were in a tough spot.
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December 26, 2021.
Naren was a pioneer of Indian venture capital. He was a mentor and a close friend to all of us at the fund and we will miss his passion, caring nature and towering intellect.
His wife, Vinita Gupta, and two daughters are his survivors. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.
