ANRF's RDI Fund prepares to announce its first cohort of fund managers soon

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Announcement of ANRF's RDI Fund

Highlights

The RDI Fund will soon announce its first cohort of secondary fund managers, after which new cohorts will be selected more than once a year.
TDB and BIRAC have each been approved for Rs 2,000 crore under the RDI Fund, with a focus on late-stage capital and debt or convertible debentures.
The RDI Fund aims to attract Rs 4 lakh crore in private capital from Rs 1 lakh crore in public investment, generating an economic impact of Rs 10 lakh crore.

This article was translated from the original. Read the original version by our correspondent here.

Fund manager selection and deployment framework

In an exclusive interview with Forbes India, ANRF CEO Dr Shivkumar Kalyanaraman said the RDI Fund is close to announcing its first cohort of secondary fund managers, after which calls will also be issued for subsequent cohorts. He said these cohorts could be selected more than once a year as the fund continues to assess emerging portfolios, strategically underserved areas and supply-chain development needs.

According to Kalyanaraman, the selection of fund managers will emphasize factors such as a proven investment track record, the ability to assess technology, ecosystem-building, market access and partnership frameworks. He said managers do not necessarily need to be technical experts themselves, but should be able to invest in projects with appropriate expert support that can help grow this asset class.

He also said the RDI Fund views the entire deep-tech investment spectrum, from early-stage to late-stage, as an asset class. According to him, TDB and BIRAC have each been approved for Rs 2,000 crore under the RDI Fund, with a focus on providing late-stage capital, including patient capital with low dilution, structured as debt or convertible debentures.

Impact on private R&D investment and India's technological autonomy

Kalyanaraman said R&D investment in India needs to move from a government-led model to a government-enabled model and then to a private-sector-led model. According to him, total R&D investment has risen from around 0.64 percent to 0.84 percent of GDP, but in developed Western economies this ratio is between 2 and 3 percent, with a much higher non-government share.

He said the goal is to raise India's R&D investment to 3 percent of GDP over the next two decades, and the RDI Fund aims to attract an additional Rs 4 lakh crore in private capital from taxpayers' Rs 1 lakh crore investment. According to him, this capital could generate an economic impact of nearly Rs 10 lakh crore as it flows through the economy, creating a major catalytic effect among companies, research institutions and capital providers.

Speaking about ANRF's broader role, he said the institution is focused on positioning India as a research and innovation powerhouse by coordinating among the government, industry, academia and entrepreneurship. According to him, this framework helps India strengthen self-reliance in critical technologies, long-term industrial capacity and sovereign technological capabilities in strategic sectors.

Our previous report discussed the growing interest of private investors in IP-based deep-tech manufacturing companies in India and the direction of capital flows. It noted that policy incentives in sectors such as space, semiconductors, defence, energy and advanced machinery—such as the Rs 1 lakh crore R&D/innovation fund and schemes like PLI—are attracting long-term, patient capital, although these businesses may take time to mature and develop exit cycles.

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