How Snapdeal founder Kunal Bahl became the titan of early-stage investing
₹57 lakh into the startup, then known as Urban Clap. It was a gamble. Through their venture company, Titan Capital, they were essentially backing an idea.
They were not alone; other established venture capitalists such as Elevation Capital and Accel Partners also participated in that March-April 2015 round. Last month, when Dharana Capital invested $50 million in Urban Company, Titan Capital exited with around ₹110-120 crore. The venture investor had multiplied its money 200 times.
Few investors in India, even the most storied ones, can boast of such phenomenal returns. It was not a flash in the pan. Titan Capital had made very profitable exits earlier as well.
In 2022, it booked a 100X exit from Ola Cabs, as well as from debt recovery and legal automation business Credgenics, according to a report by tech news publication Entrackr in November 2023. Again, when Mamaearth went public last October-November, Titan Capital booked a 100x return. And now, the initial public offering (IPO) of Unicommerce, which was acquired by Snapdeal three years after it was founded in 2012, is set to open.
Over the years, the logistics-focused SaaS business stayed under the radar, became profitable, and funded itself through internal accruals. It is now valued at around ₹1,100 crore. Unicommerce offers e-commerce solutions covering order and inventory, returns, and omnichannel management, and serves more than 20,000 brands and marketplaces, including boAt, Lenskart and Myntra.
Promoter Snapdeal, now rebranded as AceVector, as well as Softbank, are offloading some shares in Unicommerce. But this time, Bahl and Bansal, who own 10% of the business through Titan Capital, are staying put. With these handsome exits, the duo have shown time and
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