India, June 19 -- In early 2022, enterprise HR tech startup Darwinbox raised its Series D round, joining the unicorn club. Most observers saw it as a milestone for Indian SaaS, but for 3one4 Capital, one of its earliest backers, it was a defining moment in the fund's lifetime.

The Bengaluru-based early-stage venture firm exited the startup with a 58x return from its seven-year-old debut fund - a rare feat in India's venture capital ecosystem.

The latest exit is an equity sale of the fund's partial shareholding in Darwinbox. The company closed a $140 Mn round led by Partners Group and KKR. Fund I registered an MOIC of 58.07x and an IRR of 65.08% on its exit.

But getting to this point wasn't straightforward.

"We launched Fund I in 2016 ...