Steptrade Capital’s Chanakya Opportunities Fund II hits first close, crosses Rs 100 crore in commitments

Steptrade Capital, an Ahmedabad-based SEBI-registered alternative investment fund manager, has achieved the first close of its unannounced CAT II AIF, Chanakya Opportunities Fund II (COF II), securing more than Rs 100 crore in investor commitments within just three months of launch.

Launched in February 2026 with a target corpus of Rs 500 crore, Chanakya Opportunities Fund II completed its first close through an exclusive initial participation phase.

The fund has attracted commitments from ultra-high-net-worth individuals, family offices and sophisticated investors seeking exposure to India’s expanding pre-IPO market.

With the first close now complete and capital deployment set to begin in August, the fund is opening its next allocation window to a broader pool of eligible investors.

Chanakya Opportunities Fund II has been launched in the legacy of Chanakya Opportunities Fund I, India’s first SME-Exchange-focused CAT II AIF. CA Kresha Gupta has founded the series.

COF I was co-managed by CA Kresha Gupta and Ankush Jain, CFA. COF II is co-managed by CA Kresha Gupta and CA Akshay Dawra.

The first theme is Advanced Manufacturing, covering electronics and ESDM, speciality chemicals, defence and aerospace, and semiconductors. The second is Energy Transition and Infrastructure, including battery energy storage systems, electric vehicle ecosystems, power transmission, transformers, grid modernisation and data centre infrastructure. The third is Emerging Enablers, comprising AI and robotics, digital healthcare diagnostics, bio-manufacturing and rare earth supply chains.

Unlike traditional listed equity funds, COF II is designed for Pre-IPO and growth-stage companies. At this stage, businesses have typically established commercial scale, while remaining outside the public markets where valuations are often reset following an IPO.

“India’s next generation of listed companies is being built well before they reach the stock exchanges,” said CA Kresha Gupta, Fund Manager, Chanakya Opportunities Fund I and II, and Director, Steptrade Capital.

“The response to our first close reflects growing investor conviction that the pre-IPO stage has become an important part of long-term wealth creation. Our focus remains on identifying businesses that are benefiting from structural changes across manufacturing, energy and technology before they become widely accessible.”

CA Akshay Dawra, Fund Manager, Chanakya Opportunities Fund II, said, “The private markets have evolved significantly over the past few years. Investors are increasingly seeking institutional access to companies during their growth phase rather than after they become public. Our investment strategy is centred on identifying businesses with strong fundamentals and the potential to become category leaders over the coming years.”