Chiratae welcomes Ken Shibusawa to Asia Regional Advisory Board

Japan, November 10, 2023: Chiratae Ventures, a prominent venture capital firm from India, is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Ken Shibusawa from Japan to its esteemed Asia Advisory Board, reaffirming its dedication to the larger Asian market.

Recognising the growing importance of Asia as an investor base and a rapidly emerging market, Chiratae Ventures has been actively engaged in Japan for many years. Its dominant presence cuts across large Investors such as Nippon Life India Fund of Funds, ASICS, Co-investments by Japanese corporates in Chiratae’s portfolio such as JSR’s investment into Cropin and last but not least Chiratae portfolio’s expanding Japan presence such as Lenskart – Owndays partnership. 

Speaking on this, Sudhir Sethi, Founder and Chairman of Chiratae Ventures, mentioned, “After Automotive and Infrastructure, Indo – Japan business corridor will be defined by the Digital ecosystem engagement and a stellar example is our portfolio, Lenskart’s strategic partnership with Owndays to enhance its presence across 15 countries. Both as a potential market for the portfolio companies as well as a strategic capital base, Japan’s financial and industrial corporates have lots to offer and gain with deepening relationship in India.. We are proud to have Shibusawa-san bring his deep Industry connects and help us build this third wave of Indo-Japan business partnerships.”

A serial entrepreneur, Mr. Ken Shibusawa holds the positions of Chief Executive Officer at Shibusawa and Company, Inc. and Founder and Chairman at Commons Asset Management. He is also the Founder and CEO of &Capital – an Impact fund focused on Africa. and a Senior Advisor at Brunswick Group.

Ken Shibusawa shared his excitement for the new role, adding, “Chiratae Ventures’s own journey  has been synonymous to the Venture Ecosystem growth in India and it is the largest Domestic VC fund in India with strongest presence in Japan across Investors, Partners and its portfolio companies. I look forward to add value to the ever-strengthening Indo-Japan business corridor through this advisory role and helping Chiratae and its portfolio find mutual synergies with Japanese corporates.”

Ken is recognized as Japan’s leading voice on stakeholder capitalism, in part due to his work in expressing the management philosophy of his ancestor Eiichi Shibusawa, the industrialist known as “the father of Japanese capitalism,” for the modern era. Established in 2001, Shibusawa and Company, Inc. serves as a strategic advisory firm specializing in alternative investments, ESG/SDGs alignment, and human resource development. On the other hand, Commons Asset Management, founded in 2008, operates as a mutual fund dedicated to providing long-term investment opportunities to Japanese households. In 2023, he founded &Capital, Inc., an impact fund management company for Africa. He brings extensive market experience from his time at JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs, and his role as the representative managing director of the Tokyo Office at Moore Capital, a global macro hedge fund.

Additionally, Ken Shibusawa serves as a director and co-chair of the Global South Africa Committee of Keizai Doyukai (Japan Association of Corporate Executives). He is a member of various government committees, including the Council for a New Form of Capitalism, established by Prime Minister Kishida. He also acts as an advisor to the Office of the President at the University of Tokyo, a steering committee member of UNDP SDG Impact, a board member of the International Foundation for Valuing Impact, a special advisor to the ISSB (International Sustainability Standards Boards) chair, and chairman of the GSG (Global Steering Group for Impact Investment) National Advisory Board Japan. Most recently, he was appointed as co-head of Triple I (Impact Investment Initiative) for Global Health, an initiative endorsed by G7 leadership at the Hiroshima Summit.

Anoop Menon, Principal-Investments who also leads Investor Relations in the East Asian region, says, “Chiratae has been very actively engaged in Japan since 2018.  Shibusawa san’s association with us is not only a great testament to the credibility and track record of Chiratae, but also a show of confidence in the potential that the overall Indian Venture ecosystem has to offer for increased global participation. In the times ahead, we will also look to have a local presence in Japan to enhance the collaboration and deliver strategic benefits to our partners there.” 

Chiratae has launched its fifth flagship Venture Capital Fund and is seeing increased interest from potential Global Investors, including Japan. Fund V is anchored on the themes of Population scale solutions, Deeptech innovations, Vertical Integration, Omnichannel reach across ConsumerTech, SaaS, Healthtech, Fintech, Deeptech to name a few sectors. Shibusawa (san) will play a vital role in driving Chiratae’s vision of Indian Technology potential and taking Indo-Japan partnership to a wider audience in Japan.

About Chiratae Ventures:
Chiratae Ventures is a 17-year-old Indian technology venture capital fund advisor, having advised funds that collectively (across six funds) have $1.18 Bn AUM, 130+ investments, 50 exits, 9 Unicorns, 3 IPOs and a track record of having returned capital to LPs in each of the last 12 years. The funds advised by Chiratae Ventures have investments across sectors such as Consumer-Tech, SaaS, Fintech, and Healthtech and have been early backers of companies such as Bizongo, Fibe, FirstCry, Flipkart, Lenskart, Myntra, Pixis, PolicyBazaar and Uniphore, amongst many others.