Seasoned leaders and active advocates of the Nepali diaspora Preeti Adhikary and Sajan Gautam on Sunday, June 1, announced the official launch of Momo VC. The US-based venture capital firm will focus on early-stage startups in cybersecurity, AI, fintech, digital health, biotech, and sustainability.
“Staying true to the sentiment that the word Momo evokes within the Nepali community—a sense of comfort and belonging—our firm is committed to offering more than just capital,” said Preeti Adhikary, Co-Founder and General Partner of Momo VC. “We aim to provide founders with trusted support, guidance, and a strong sense of belonging as they build and scale their ventures.”
Adhikary, who founded The Great Nepali Diaspora (TGND), brings deep expertise in building communities and bridging the gaps between Nepal and the rest of the world. In the last three years, TGND has connected the fragmented and diverse global Nepali professional diaspora by organizing 150+ networking events–leading to mentorship, knowledge transfer, and collaboration. Prior to that, she served as the VP of Marketing & Operations, Fusemachines Inc., a leading AI provider.
Sajan Gautam, Co-founder and General Partner, complements this with extensive experience as a technologist and venture advisor. Until recently, Sajan was the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at Arvest Bank, one of the largest banks in the USA. He also spent his earlier years in institutions such as Citi and EY. He’s worked closely with global VC syndicates, helping assess market opportunities, guide investments, and support scaling teams.
The fund is the fourth and final pillar in terms of the global tech ecosystem that the co-founders have been working on; the other pillars are:
● The Great Nepali Diaspora, an extensive global network connecting people and ideas by enabling access to innovators, investors, and founders through mentorship, and markets.
● Nepal Venture Studio, an avenue to deliver training to founders through accelerators and hands-on workshops to help validate, refine, and scale their businesses for long-term growth.
● Startup Resource Hub, a curated platform that provides knowledge to founders by offering tools, templates, and education content - from pitching investors to navigating international markets.
“Over the last several years, we have been doing a comprehensive audit of the startup ecosystem, both in Nepal and globally. In the process, we have noted progress across access to reliable and credible stakeholders, resources, and networks. However, we see an opportunity to rethink the venture building and scaling approach, especially for technology-enabled startups.Through this fourth pillar, we complement our ongoing efforts, while generating measurable impact in the startup ecosystem,” said Gautam.
The fund has already made an investment in Imera, an immigration tech platform and plans to invest in up to 40 startups that are incorporated in the US over the next three to five years. Additionally, there are active plans to start a local fund in Nepal.
