New Delhi, Mar 27 (PTI) The government has invested Rs 257.77 crore under the Electronics Development Fund in eight "Daughter funds", which in turn have given financial support to 128 startups and companies, Parliament was informed on Friday.
Daughter funds are specialized investment vehicles or sub-funds that receive capital from a larger "mother" fund or government-backed entity to invest in specific sectors, startups, or MSMEs.
The Minister of state for electronics and IT Jitin Prasada in a written reply to Rajya Sabha said that the Electronics Development Fund (EDF) was set up as a Fund of Funds to invest in "Daughter funds" and it provides risk capital to companies developing emerging technologies in the area of electronics, nano-electronics and information technology (IT).
"As on February 28, 2026, EDF has invested Rs 257.77 crore in eight Daughter funds, which in turn have made investments of Rs 1,335.77 crore in 128 companies/startups. Total employment in supported companies is more than 22,700. The number of IPs created/acquired by the supported companies are more than 300," Prasada said.
Canbank Venture Capital Funds Ltd (CVCFL) is the fund manager, and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology is the anchor investor of EDF.
According to the information shared by Prasada, the investments have been made in firms located in 12 cities.
Most of the investments have gone to firms in Bangalore (88), followed by 7 each in Hyderabad and Kerala, six each in Delhi and Chennai, 4 each in Mumbai and Pune, two in Gurgaon, one each in Faridabad, Jaipur, Kolkata and Noida.