Michael and Susan Dell Foundation is seeking to arrange an incubator for small companies with solutions for the unserved and the underserved segments. The foundation is in discussions with CIIE (Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship) of IIM-Ahmedabad for the similar reason.
The incubator will seek at “early stage” firms that offer digital empowerment, fiscal inclusion, services, and job creation in other such affected areas, as per Rahil Rangwala. Rangwala is also the Director at Michael and Susan Dell Foundation for family financial stability. The organization will also provide seed financing to the companies.
“We expect to install this incubator by the end of 2016,” he claimed. “With this incubator, we plan to support companies serving at the end of the chain. We will seek companies in the segments of job creation and financial inclusion in the informal areas and other important sectors,” Rangwala claimed. The foundation also lately at IIM Bangalore backed a non-profit incubator and struck an association with UnLtd, the startup incubator, to support “early stage” social businesses operating on employability and skill development of low-income youth.
Rangwala did not state how much funds the foundation has allocated for the forthcoming incubator. Last year, the foundation dedicated $50 Million (almost Rs 332.6 Crore) for investments in India over 3 Years. The foundation has until now spent in a range of firms in the financial services and education sector, comprising ConveGenius and OnlineTyari, the edtech startups; Swadhaar, the microfinance company; and Kinara Capital, the debt-financing company. It also lately spent in Blowhorn, the intra-city logistics startup, and Skillveri, the industrial training company, as fraction of its job creation aim.
In the family financial stability segment, the organization has 17 lively investments, has made 7 exits, comprising microfinance institutions Ujjivan and Janalakshmi. Its investee firms in this segment made a revenue of almost Rs 750 Crore in 2016. It has 7 lively equity investments in firms catering services related to innovative education. The organization, established by billionaire and Dell founder, Michael Dell, and his wife, Susan, unlocked its office in India in 2006 and has until now dedicated over Rs 1,100 Crore.