Former Jio President Vikas Choudhury's Playbook Partners marks first close of maiden fund

Growth Capital (GC) firm Playbook Partners, founded by former Jio President Vikas Choudhury, has marked the first close of its maiden fund after raising over $130 million from established global investors from Europe, the US, Middle East, and India.

Launched earlier this year, Playbook is targeting a corpus of $250 million, which includes a greenshoe option, the company said in a statement.

The operator-driven fund targets tech-enabled businesses with positive unit economics, digital scalability, and sustainable growth, the statement said.

Choudhury has invested in multiple unicorns, including inMobi and Rapido.

“Powered by a 5x growth in the digital economy to over $1 Trillion, India will account for over 15% of the entire global economic growth over the next decade. Our purpose is to fuel India’s aspirational growth and transformation at scale," said Choudhury.

"Our playbook isn't just to fund, but to forge - capital, relationships, and strategic insight - necessary for visionary companies to master the art of scale, and institutionalize their leadership position. Our global investors’ trust and momentum is an endorsement of our differentiated strategy and its alignment with the market opportunity,” he added.

Playbook’s senior investing team includes Dushyant Singh, formerly with McKinsey & Co, and Sumit Jain, who previously worked with Sistema Asia Capital and Kalaari Capital. The firm's operating partners feature industry leaders such as Manish Choksi from Asian Paints, Aakash Chaudhry of Aakash Education, and Milan Sheth, formerly of Automation Anywhere, all of whom have joined through their family offices or in a personal capacity.

Playbook's advisory board boasts of notable leaders with extensive experience in scaling large businesses, including Naveen Tewari, Founder of inMobi; Nitish Mittersain, Founder of Nazara; Sushil Jiwarajka from Ericsson; Dileep Choksi, formerly with Deloitte; and Priti Rathi Gupta from Anand Rathi Group. This diverse team of seasoned professionals brings a wealth of expertise across various sectors, enhancing Playbook’s growth-focused investment approach.

(The article has been updated)