Ratan Tata has his own mantra when it comes to investing in start-ups.
The 78-year-old Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, who has now turned serial investor, said he invests in a company that excites him and bets on entrepreneurs who are passionate about the company.
“I am absolutely thrilled to be the part of the start-up ecosystem. Unfortunately, I don’t have billions of dollars to invest…in my small way I lend my support to entrepreneurs with interesting business ideas but are finding it difficult to get investments because their businesses are not very sexy,” Tata said during a discussion with Snapdeal founder Kunal Bahl.
Tata, who is currently one of the most sought-after investors in the Indian start-up ecosystem, pumped money into over 28 start-ups in 2012, including Olacabs, Snapdeal and Paytm. His latest investment was in intelligence and research platform Tracxn. Tata has also invested in a few foreign start-ups, including US-based Altaeros Energy and Singapore-based analytics firm Crayon Data.
Tata said he is more intuitive when it comes to funding start-ups compared to strategic decisions such as investments in Corus and Jaguar. “Start-ups are more or less straight personal investment,” he said, adding that he recognises that not all investments will be a success.