Agna, Woodstock & Diwali

I have been off social media for a while, occasionally “liking” things that I believe in. My life journey has been always about seeking and Karma (conscious actions) following my Dharma (inner compass) to the best of my ability. In many ways basing my decisions on the POV of laying on death bed and looking back if I would make a decision. Or, in a less nihilistic way - living like a third person in my own life or as Eastern cultures say “witnessing your life”!

As today is Diwali - the festival of lights - where I wish that everyone experiences “inner light” - it is also important for me to “illuminate” where my time and attention have been going. Two parts (1) Wellness - Eating right, waking up before sunrise & morning Sadhana (Hata Yoga, Kriya Yoga & meditation) actively supported by over a year of practicing Kalaripayattu (Origin of all martial arts in the East) has made me most resilient in my entire life (2) Broader focus - Woodstock & Agna.

My original thesis (of Paradigm Shift in 2016) that made me switch from over a decade-long corporate ladder journey across a spectrum of businesses in precision manufacturing, renewable energy, and financial services (Private Equity, Asset Management, Distribution, Broking and SME Insurance) made me deeply acknowledge that (1) Corporates & Financial Services were broken horizontally (limited cross organisation and cross department collaboration & participation) and vertically (shareholder centric products and not customer centric products) (2) Technology will permeate as there was an incentive for human - human alignment over longer timeframes for doing right things (refer all frameworks & jargons in MBA textbooks). This led me to the path of investing in personal capacity in Fintech & Enterprise SaaS in the period of 2014-16.

When I discovered Bitcoin in 2016, price was the least interesting feature - the most interesting was the emergence of a “participative global economy”. Others went down the rabbit hole and called it “Network states”, “Sovereignty”, etc. In my worldview - Participation is important as the offshoots of it are “Inclusion and Expression”. These are more fundamental needs that make people feel belonged and work towards the success of self, family, community, nation, humanity, and cosmos - based on how wide your view of life is. It’s a different story that eventually we all merge into the cosmos!?

Post discovery of Bitcoin, I advised a few Blockchain startups through my operating experience lens and made quite a few investments from 2016 to 2018. These journeys were extremely productive in every way. My intention to set up a compliance-first and thesis-driven Web 3.0 fund began in mid-2018. It took shape at the beginning of 2019. In the first year, we made 5 investments. Now we have two Funds in Web 3.0 (1) Woodstock Capital Fund I - Early stage and (2) Woodstock Capital Fund II - Growth stage. They are in US and Cayman. We have made over 75 investments.

Why Woodstock matters

World needs -

? an important piece of the jigsaw puzzle - Blockchain and distributed incentive layer.

? Exponential alpha - largely speculative for now - but mainstreaming at a clipping rate.

But, the world is also becoming?

?? Chaotic - We have experienced the most peaceful past half-century or so in human history. And we are now experiencing protectionism, new regional power shifts, currency wars, supply chain wars, resource wars, and human migrations. Possibly the largest ever in the history of mankind as we are 7 billion of us “least resilient physically and mentally” ever.

?? Technology dependent - We are at the tipping point of the Technology renaissance. As emerging technologies permeate we will see “solutions to problems that human beings have not been able to solve for so far”.

So, it represents both a threat and an opportunity to human civilization. That’s why insights, foresight, clarity, and integrity matters. That’s Agna’s literal meaning. Agna has references across Indian, Middle Eastern, Greek, etc. cultures representing the above meaning and more. So, besides Woodstock - I am setting up a new company, Agna Holdings, with a focus on Institutional mandates, products, and services. As the action shifts sustainably from West to the East - we will see a deluge of institutional capital and talent moving into emerging markets and emerging technologies to seek exponential alpha. It will seek partners they can trust over longer timeframes. Agna is designed to fulfil that promise.

Agna Capital (soon to be launched) will invest in both Data & Engineering. Within Data, the focus would be on Blockchain, AI, and Metaverse. Within Engineering, the focus would be on Aerospace, Defence, and CleanTech. This will be a cookie-cutter - no frills - thesis-driven fund with limited operational complexity and exceptional focus on three things : (1) East to West corridor (2) Convergence play (3) Hard to solve problems.

There will be many more jigsaw puzzle pieces that will come together to let Agna rise!

In a nutshell, this brings me full circle to my original thesis (of Paradigm Shift in 2016) that led me to the point of no return - perpetually deep diving into the evolving world of technology, economics, social, and ecology. Both Agna and Woodstock have their own roles to play in unravelling this thesis. There is no conflict and both are important and complementary.

When people ask me, “Is this 'divergence and distraction’?". Off-late, I have got a better response - In the East, it is not “Either you are with me or against me” it is “Sabka saath sabka vikas”. So, let’s build the future together.