As India's venture capital landscape evolves, is Accel grooming its next generation to take the lead

After years of speculation about the retirement of Accel India’s founding partners, Subrata Mitra and Prashanth Prakash, it seems changes are on the horizon. Mitra and Prakash, two of India's most influential venture capitalists, have led over 50 investments for Accel over nearly two decades. However, since the firm's significant Flipkart exit, their involvement has decreased, with more junior partners taking on greater responsibilities. Although transitioning beyond the founding duo will be challenging for Accel, they appear to have established several safeguards to ensure a smooth transition whenever it occurs.As August came to an end, reports surfaced that Accel India, one of the country’s pioneering and successful early-stage venture capital firms, was looking to raise its eighth India-focused fund. Having raised its seventh fund, a $650 million corpus, in early 2022, Accel is aiming to make a significant impact with its latest fundraising efforts. While the reports, which Accel has neither confirmed nor denied, suggest that this could be the firm's largest fund yet, potentially exceeding $700 million. Accel is perhaps best known for its early backing of Flipkart when the e-commerce giant was still relatively unknown. This investment led to a $2 billion exit on an $80 million investment when Walmart acquired Flipkart in 2018, marking the most successful startup investment by an Indian VC firm. Accel has continued to invest in several other successful companies, such as Swiggy, UrbanClap, and Eruditus, solidifying its position as one of India’s most active early-stage venture capital firms. While Accel traditionally prides itself on being the first institutional investor in a startup, that role has evolved over time. The dynamic partnership of Prashanth Prakash and Subrata Mitra is widely recognized as the driving force behind the firm’s impressive track record.