PROMAFT Partners
PROMAFT Partners backs Indian startups with strong product-market fit, focusing on sustainable growth, defensible business models, and long-term value creation.
Overview
PROMAFT Partners is a Mumbai-based venture capital firm founded in 2024 by Raghav Bahl and Soham Avlani. The firm follows a product-market-fit-driven investment approach, evaluating businesses on the strength of customer demand, competitive advantages, and sustainable economics rather than revenue scale or funding stage alone.
The founding team brings experience from earlier investments through Alibaba Group India, Bessemer Venture Partners, and 9Unicorns. Their previous investment experience includes companies such as Swiggy, Paytm, PharmEasy, BigBasket, TaxiForSure, and XpressBees. These investments reflect the founders' experience before PROMAFT Partners and are distinct from the firm's own portfolio.
Investment Focus and Stage
PROMAFT Partners follows a sector-agnostic investment strategy, with interests spanning consumer businesses, fintech, artificial intelligence, technology-enabled services, and digital platforms. Its reported cheque size ranges from $3 million to $7 million, with investments typically directed towards companies that have demonstrated product-market fit.
The firm evaluates customer retention, acquisition costs, unit economics, network effects, scalability, and competitive advantages. Its investment philosophy emphasises building a repeatable and sustainable growth model before committing substantial resources to expansion. PROMAFT seeks to work closely with founders on strategic decisions, business development, hiring, and capital allocation.
Fund Size and Portfolio
PROMAFT Partners launched its maiden fund, PROMAFT Partners Fund I, with a target corpus of ₹1,000 crore. Registered as a Category II Alternative Investment Fund, it follows a concentrated investment strategy, aiming to partner with a select group of companies where it can contribute beyond capital.
The firm's portfolio includes WIOM, an internet services company that provides affordable home broadband through a network of local entrepreneurs. In June 2025, WIOM raised approximately $40 million in a funding round led by Accel and Bertelsmann India Investments, with participation from other investors.
Its second publicly announced investment is The Hosteller, an Indian backpacker hostel chain offering affordable accommodation and community-oriented travel experiences. In April 2026, PROMAFT Partners led the company's ₹150 crore Series B funding round, alongside V3 Ventures and other investors. The Hosteller planned to use the capital to expand its property network, strengthen operations, and develop its travel offering.
Leadership
Raghav Bahl is Founding General Partner at PROMAFT Partners. Before launching the firm, he worked in investment roles at Alibaba Group India and Bessemer Venture Partners. His previous investment experience includes exposure to Indian consumer internet and technology businesses, including Swiggy, Paytm, BigBasket, PharmEasy, TaxiForSure, and XpressBees.
Soham Avlani is Founding General Partner. Before co-founding PROMAFT Partners, he was a partner at 9Unicorns, where he worked on fund strategy and investments in early-stage businesses. His experience spans startup investing and working with founders on business development and growth.
Abhishek Kshirsagar is part of the investment team at PROMAFT Partners, contributing to investment evaluation and portfolio development across technology-driven businesses.