Norwest closes $1.2bn fund

Palo Alto-headquartered venture firm Norwest Venture Partners has raised $1.2 billion for Norwest Venture Partners XI, nearly double the size of its $650 million predecessor.

The global fund will make early to late stage venture and growth investments in the information technology, business services, infrastructure, technology-enabled services and consumer sectors, according to a Norwest statement.

The firm see opportunities “particularly in growth equity and in emerging markets such as India and China”, Promod Haque, a Norwest managing partner, said in the statement.

While the bulk of Norwest’s investments are in the US, followed by India, Israel and China, the firm has bolstered its Indian and Israeli operations since the close of its previous fund in 2006. In India, it hired five investment professionals to focus on venture and growth equity investments and opened offices in Mumbai and Bangalore.

In the same period, the firm has also opened its maiden Israeli office in Herzelia and hired two investment professionals. This year, it hired three growth equity investment professionals in its Palo Alto office.

Founded in 1961, Norwest presently has $3.7 billion in capital under management. The firm’s previous investments in Asia and Israel include the National Stock Exchange of India; Indian telecom service provider OnMobile; Chinese mobile software company Borqs; and Israeli broadband IP media services provider ConteXtream.