Startup Odisha, an initiative of the MSME Department, Government of Odisha, kickstarted FundStack 3.0, a two-day Annual Startup Investment Summit today. Day 1 commenced with a thought-provoking round table featuring industry stalwarts, such as Dr. Omkar Rai, Executive Chairman of Startup Odisha, and Shri Saswat Mishra, IAS, Principal Secretary, MSME Department, Government of Odisha accompanied by representatives from SIDBI and Investment Partners. The session deeply engaged in exploring the intricacies of Odisha’s rapidly evolving startup ecosystem, delving into the advantages of the Odisha Startup Grant Fund (OSGF), and shedding light on the driving forces propelling the state’s entrepreneurial growth. The gathering set the stage for a comprehensive exploration of key factors shaping the entrepreneurial landscape in Odisha.
Thereafter, significant Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were forged with Equanimity Ventures and Sanchi Connect, marking the initiation of impactful strategic partnerships geared towards fostering innovation in the region. The collaboration with Equanimity Ventures focuses on the preparation of startups for investment, ensuring their readiness for the dynamic landscape. Concurrently, the partnership with Sanchi Connect is tailored to empower startups through a comprehensive acceleration program, facilitating their growth trajectory.
Further, the day unfolded with vibrant Panel Pitching sessions hosted across multiple meeting rooms. Startup luminaries showcased their innovations to prominent investment firms such as Unicorn India Ventures, Mumbai Angels, Orios Ventures, IvyCap Ventures, Startup Xseed, Inflection Point Ventures, Indian Angel Network, and more. 50 Startups from various industries such as Deeptech, Healthtech, Edutech, E-commerce and food aggregators participated enthusiastically. As the day progressed, the summit reached a pivotal moment with top 20 startups getting an opportunity for exclusive one-on-one meetings on November 22nd marked by speed dating and networking sessions.
Dr. Omkar Rai, Executive Chairman, Startup Odisha, said, “The goal of FundStack 3.0 is to seamlessly channel capital to startups through strategic connections with prominent investors. The core purpose of this event is to not only unlock funding opportunities for our startups, harness the Odisha Growth Startup Fund effectively but also to provide mentorship and guidance to our startups from notable investors. We are committed to building an ecosystem with optimal, built-in resources that empower startups in the state to not only grow but also thrive.”
Shri Saswat Mishra, IAS, Principal Secretary, MSME Department, said, “With FundStack 3.0, we invite investors to infuse capital into the growing startup ecosystem of the state. This is an excellent time to invest in our state as we have grown from strength to strength in every sector over the last couple of years.”
