From Cloudnine’s ₹1200 Cr Success to Architecting PeerCapital’s Founder-First VC Blueprint
Discover Rohit M A's journey from scaling Cloudnine to a $150M+ giant & his vision with PeerCapital, the operator-led VC firm backing India's next tech wave.
Rohit M A is a name synonymous with entrepreneurial tenacity and visionary leadership in India. Having co-founded and steered Cloudnine Group of Hospitals from a single unit into India's leading chain of maternity, women, and child care service hospitals – a monumental journey culminating in a public-listing-ready entity with revenues soaring past ₹1200 crores (approximately $150 million USD) – Rohit has now embarked on a new mission: to institutionalize his vast operational experience into "valuable capital" for the next generation of Indian entrepreneurs through Peer Capital.
His journey, filled with incredible scaling milestones, formidable challenges, and profound learnings, offers a masterclass in entrepreneurship. I had the privilege of delving deep into his story on the Founder Thesis Podcast.
Check out the video of the conversation here or read on for insights.
Rohit M A: The Man Behind the Mission 👨💼
Early Life & The Entrepreneurial Seed
Born into an "enterprising family based in Bangalore," Rohit M A was immersed in a culture that "nurtured entrepreneurship, thinking out-of-the-box, striving for excellence and perseverance" from a young age. This environment clearly laid the foundation for his future endeavors. His first brush with business wasn't a tentative step but a confident stride at the remarkably young age of 18, merchandising high-end consumer electronics – a venture he ran successfully for about three years, long before the e-commerce boom.
My dad had pushed me and my brother to actually start taking up the first attempt of running a business. This was in consumer electronics... nothing fancy, but it just grounded us very differently in terms of understanding the nuances of business.
Academic & Corporate Grounding
Complementing his innate drive, Rohit pursued an engineering degree in Computer Science. He further honed his business acumen with an Executive MBA from the prestigious Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bengaluru, specializing in Entrepreneurship.
The Cloudnine Saga: A Healthcare Revolution 🏥
The co-founding of Cloudnine Group of Hospitals in 2006-2007 is arguably Rohit's most defining entrepreneurial achievement.
The Genesis: The idea stemmed from discussions between Rohit's entrepreneur father, Ashok Kumar, and his maternal uncle, Dr. R Kishore Kumar, an internationally renowned neonatologist. Rohit explained the initial vision:
It started with his [Dr. Kishore's] vision to kind of be able to bring something in, which is world class, single minded focus of just going into mother and child as a sector, doing something that no one has done before.
The core mission was transformative: to reframe maternity care from a medical problem to a wellness experience, driven by the belief that "Pregnancy is Wellness and Not an Illness."Rohit’s Anchor Role & Unprecedented Growth: Rohit played an "anchor role in the establishment & pathfinding vision" of Cloudnine. Under his leadership, what started as a single hospital in South Bangalore burgeoned into a formidable multi-city chain.
Financial Milestones: The first unit remarkably achieved profitability within just nine months, significantly outperforming the initial target of 36-48 months. By FY2012, when Matrix Partners invested, Cloudnine's revenue was ₹28 crores. Fast forward, and the group clocked revenues north of ₹1200 crores in FY24/25.
Scaling & Footprint: From that single unit in 2006, Cloudnine expanded to 42 locations across 16 cities, with a line of sight for 50 centers.
Three out of five babies who are born are actually born under the Cloudnine banner. This is huge goodwill but it's also a tremendous responsibility to continue to do good.
The Funding Journey – A Lesson in Persistence: The journey wasn't without its capital challenges💰
It took at least two years, with numerous rejections each time.
Following Matrix, Cloudnine attracted marquee investors like Sequoia Capital (2013), True North (around 2015-2016, which brought a sharper focus on EBITDA), and later, global giants like TPG and Temasek, cumulatively raising over $200 million. Rohit acknowledged the value these diverse investors brought:
> All of these investors over a period of time have added lot of value towards thinking towards [growth and process]. Matrix was very founder-first... Sequoia would also value that but they would value a lot more on more process orientation... Then True North happened... and they started talking about this term called EBITDA.Navigating Challenges: Beyond capital, Rohit steered Cloudnine through significant operational hurdles, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
Building an Institution: A key part of Rohit's journey was transitioning Cloudnine from a founder-led, family-involved setup to a professionally managed organization, making it "public listing ready."
Awards & Recognition 🏆
Rohit's leadership and entrepreneurial achievements have been recognized with prestigious accolades, including the Economic Times 40under40 award.
Personal Philosophy & Leadership Style
Rohit champions "Perseverance and Conviction" and is a firm believer in continuous learning.
You need to surround yourself with people who are much smarter than you. That's when you will actually start growing. If you are surrounding yourself with people who are just, you know, yes, sir, yes, sir, three bags full, then, you know, nothing but a nursery rhyme.
Peer Capital: Forging Ventures with Experience 🤝
After an illustrious journey as an operator, Rohit M A co-founded PeerCapital, an early-stage venture capital firm, marking his "next big step towards making the best of this experience."
The Genesis & The Core Team
PeerCapital was co-founded by Rohit M A, Ankur Pahwa (ex-EY), and Karthik Prabhakar (ex-Chiratae Ventures). This trio represents a strategic convergence of deep operational expertise, extensive strategy and advisory experience, and strong venture capital and investment acumen.
The Problem PeerCapital Solves: More Than Just Capital 🎯
PeerCapital was conceived to address a critical gap: startups often need more than just funding; they need insightful guidance to scale successfully.
Investment Philosophy: "Valuable Capital" & The Operator Edge
PeerCapital’s foundational philosophy is its "valuable capital" thesis.
Operator-Led Fund:
“I only bring the operator sentiment to this or, you know, having been an entrepreneur sort of sentiment to this, which means the problems of scaling are the same, whether you are building a technology company or building a healthcare company or building a logistics company... It's all the same. How do you build culture? How do you hire the right people?”True Peers: The name "PeerCapital" signifies a commitment to a relationship built on shared understanding and mutual respect. They operate under the STEAM principle: Speed, Trust, Empathy, Attentiveness, and Mutual respect.
Focus on the "Right Problems":
”If you get obsessed on the solution, then you start telling everyone that my way is the best way of doing it without understanding if the problem has changed. But if you're solving for a particular problem, you will find that new solutions need to be kind of tweaked out every time.”
PeerCapital Fund Details 💰
Maiden Fund: Launched with a first close at INR 300 Cr (approximately $37.5 Mn USD) in February 2023. The target for the final close was set between INR 600 Cr (approx. $75 Mn USD) and INR 900 Cr (approx. $110 Mn+ USD).
Investment Stage: Focuses on Seed and Pre-Series A stages.
Typical Cheque Size: Up to INR 15 Cr (in the $1.8 - $2 Mn USD range).
Portfolio Size & Deployment: The firm aims to build a portfolio of around 20-21 investments through its maiden fund.
Investment Focus & Thesis: PeerCapital targets "tech-first" Indian startups. Key sectors include Fintech, Healthtech, SaaS, Climate tech, and Consumer tech services.
Illustrative Portfolio: NeoDocs, Emversity, Vaaree, Eka.Care, Saveo, One Impression, Jar, Koo, Furrl, Doosra, UrSpayce, Flash, and Finsara. Rohit also mentioned investments in AI-native companies in enterprise SaaS and sports analytics, with a potential third in gaming.
The Transition to Investor: An Ongoing Learning Journey
Rohit was candid about his own transition.
Grossly, grossly understood. It is ridiculously hard [to run a VC firm]... It's not your capital. You are always in sell mode. I honestly thought not being a founder I don't need to be in sell mode because it honestly takes a lot out of you, but man this is like 2X over again.
As a founder, my prerogative was to find answers on everything. But now as an investor, you have to kind of ask questions so that those answers kind of find itself. It's a very different thing. And I'm still learning the trade of it.
The Vision Ahead: Institutionalizing Experience for India's Future Innovators 🇮🇳
Rohit’s journey from scaling a healthcare behemoth to nurturing early-stage startups with PeerCapital is a testament to his enduring entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to the Indian startup ecosystem. PeerCapital, with its unique blend of operational C-suite experience and deep investment knowledge, is poised to be more than just a financial backer; it aims to be a true partner in building lasting enterprises.
Their focus on "valuable capital," an operator-led approach, and a genuine understanding of the founder's journey sets them apart. As India continues its ascent as a global startup hub, the role of experienced mentors and operationally savvy investors, such as Rohit and the team at PeerCapital, will be more critical than ever in shaping the next wave of innovation.
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Your Host,
Akshay Datt