Sandeep Bapat: Singularity appoints Sandeep Bapat as co-chief investment officer and senior partner

Private equity firm Singularity Growth has appointed Sandeep Bapat as its new co-chief investment officer and senior partner, following his resignation from venture debt fund Trifecta Capital.

Bapat will undertake leadership responsibilities for investment activities at Singularity Growth and also serve as a member of the investment committee, the Mumbai-based company said on Tuesday.

“I am glad that I can partner with Yash (Kela), and Mithun (Sacheti). The areas that we are spending a lot of time on are consumer brands, financial services like lending businesses, energy transition, among others,” Bapat told ET in an interaction.

Prior to joining Singularity, Bapat, an alumnus of Harvard Business School and IIT Bombay, held positions as a partner at Trifecta Capital’s late-stage equity division and as an executive director at Hillhouse Capital. He also has prior experience at investment management company Blackstone and has been an investor and advisor for notable investments like Swiggy, Cred, Atomberg, and Auxilo Finserve.

Bapat’s exit from Trifecta and subsequent appointment at Singularity comes amid a wave of senior-level churn in the Indian venture capital (VC) industry. For instance, on March 21, ET reported that Sameer Brij Verma, managing director at Nexus Venture Partners, is leaving to start his own multi-stage investment fund. Similarly, Orios Venture Partners recently saw its managing partners Anup Jain and Rajeev Suri stepping down to launch an independent fund.

“As the market becomes deeper and bigger, I think more senior people want to do something which is entrepreneurial or something which is closer to their own…” Bapat said.

Other VC firms such as Lightbox Ventures, Rebright Partners, and the SaaS-focused Together Fund have also seen similar exits from top-level executives, reflecting a broader trend.Despite India being the world’s third largest startup ecosystem, the country has been facing a funding slowdown, with venture capital investments dropping to $11 billion in 2023 from $42 billion in 2021. Only two startups achieved unicorn status in 2023.

Recently, Singularity concluded the first close of its Rs 1,500-crore fund focused on growth-stage startups at Rs 500 crore, with a green shoe option of Rs 500 crore. The second close will be completed in the next few months, with participation from a few large investors, and the final close is anticipated within a year, Bapat said.

Singularity has so far invested in companies like caffeine-based products maker Mcaffeine, customer engagement platform WebEngage, virtual telecom firm Exotel, and battery materials maker Lohum.