Dreaming of launching a startup but don’t have a college degree? You’re not alone, and now, there’s even more support for ambitious student founders and dropouts. Campus Fund, India’s pioneering venture capital firm dedicated to backing student-led startups, is breaking barriers with its third and largest fund yet. With $100 million in its sights and over half already secured, Campus Fund is proving that passion and innovation matter more than a diploma when it comes to building the next big thing.
Campus Fund, a unique Indian venture capital firm that backs student-led startups, has launched its third and largest fund to date. The new fund aims to raise $100 million and has already secured over half of the target amount. Known for investing in student founders and college dropouts, Campus Fund has already started deploying capital from this fund.
Idea Behind Startup Without a Degree
Founded in 2020 by entrepreneur Richa Bajpai during her MBA at London Business School, Campus Fund began as an academic project. Today, it stands as the only SEBI-registered Category II alternative investment fund in India focused exclusively on college founders and recent graduates.
Student founders aren’t just dreamers, They’re the doers. And this decade belongs to them.
Richa Bajpai, Founder of Campus Fund
Backing Young Entrepreneurs
Fund III aims to invest in 60 to 80 early-stage startups over the next four years. The firm will offer initial cheques ranging from Rs 1 crore to Rs 8 crore, with half of the total fund kept aside for follow-on investments. One of the first companies funded under this new round is Serendipity Space, which works on drug processing in microgravity environments.
Campus Fund believes that the next big ideas can come from any corner of India , whether it’s a dorm room in Bhopal or a garage in Surat. The team receives more than 7,000 startup applications annually, screened through a large network of 100+ student scouts across the country.
Past Success Stories
Campus Fund has already backed a number of promising startups, including Expand My Business, Digantara, EtherealX, Sarla, Sama, and GreenGrahi. Some of these companies have attracted global investors like a16z, DST Global, Accel, Peak XV Partners, and Alpha Wave. The fund has also started returning profits to its early investors, proving the success of its model.
Its limited partners include well-known names such as 360 One (formerly IIFL Wealth), Bharat Shah of HDFC Securities, Asha Jadeja Motwani (an early investor in Google), and Sameen Farooqui of Deutsche Bank. These backers add credibility and capital to the fund’s mission of supporting bold, early-stage founders.
A Personal Mission
For Bajpai, this fund is deeply personal. She launched her own startup while still in college and now wants to help others do the same. As higher education spreads to smaller cities and entrepreneurial talent grows beyond metro areas, Campus Fund sees this as the right time to scale.
