Indian origin-led early stage VC firm Countdown Capital to shut down

Indian-origin entrepreneur Jai Malik-led early-stage venture capital firm Countdown Capital will reportedly shut down by March-end amid the funding winter.

The company is slated to complete pending investments, return capital, cancel all uncalled commitments and permanently cease operation apart from current asset management, TechCrunch reported.

Its founder and solo general partner Malik decided to close the fund as “funding industrial startups is not inefficient enough to justify our existence” and “larger, multi-stage venture firms are best positioned to generate strong returns on the most valuable industrial startups”, the report said, citing his annual letter.

“Despite our performance to date, I’ve concluded that new investments are unlikely to yield strong returns,” Malik said in the letter, adding, “As a result, I no longer believe that Countdown’s existence is justified, for both our LPs and Countdown management.”

Malik did not comment on the report.

The firm has backed aerospace and defence sector startups like satellite bus developer K2 Space, machining startup Hadrian, and cybersecurity company Galvanick.

Around 12 investments are listed on the firm’s website.

Countdown’s second $15 million fund was announced in September 2022. Its first fund was $3 million.

“To be clear, we’re not bearish on venture capital or the future success of venture-scale hard tech companies at large. We’re bearish on the ability of small, early-stage funds — particularly sectionally focused ones — to continue exploiting these opportunities profitably,” Malik wrote.