First Cheque

First Cheque is a pre-seed focused venture capital firm in India that, as the name suggests, specialises in being the very first institutional capital into a founding team. They write cheques of approximately $100,000, which makes them well-suited for founders who are just starting out and need validation capital to build an MVP, hire their first team members, or run early experiments. Their portfolio is sector-agnostic, spanning consumer brands like Giva, B2B supply chain plays like Fashinza, fintech platforms like Wint Wealth, and cross-border trade enablement via Global Fair. This breadth reflects a founder-first philosophy rather than a thematic bet. For early-stage founders, First Cheque represents a pragmatic entry point into the Indian VC ecosystem. Their value-add typically includes introductions to follow-on investors, early-stage network support, and credibility signalling that can help unlock a seed round. Founders approaching them should be at idea stage or very early traction, have a compelling founding team story, and be comfortable working with an investor who is comfortable with high uncertainty at entry.