IVCA GreenReturns Summit lays out India’s climate investment roadmap

The Indian Venture and Alternate Capital Association’s (IVCA) GreenReturns Summit 2025 concluded its two-day event, bringing together investors, policymakers, climate innovators and industry leaders to discuss India’s climate priorities and the investment pathways required for a resilient, low-carbon future.

The summit showcased India’s climate-tech ecosystem through startup presentations, sector deep-dives and discussions on financing instruments for clean energy, climate resilience and industrial decarbonisation. Investors and founders emphasised the need for stable policies, demand-side efficiency solutions and innovations that reduce the energy intensity of growth.

The gathering also highlighted India’s approach to sequencing climate action by prioritising resilience, strengthening domestic capabilities and leveraging innovation to drive a transition that supports economic growth, job creation and sustainable development.

The IVCA GreenReturns Summit 2025 served as a call for collaborative efforts between the government, industry and investors to build a climate-resilient, future-ready India.

During the summit, SBI Ventures announced plans to launch its third climate-focused fund early next year. The fund will invest in early-stage and growth-stage climate startups, particularly those working on frontier climate technologies and AI-enabled climate innovations. The objective is to unlock new avenues of green growth and position India as a climate-solutions hub for the Global South.

On the second day, Sundaram Alternates unveiled its ESG and Impact Report 2024–25, which presents a comprehensive view of the firm’s real estate private credit portfolio, its ESG integration practices, measurable environmental and social outcomes and the expanding role of private capital in accelerating India’s sustainability transition.

In one of the sessions, Shri Pramod Rao, former Executive Director of SEBI and former member of IFSCA, spoke about how India’s financial markets are entering a transformative phase, where green bonds, social bonds and other impact instruments are becoming critical for mobilising private capital towards sustainability goals.

“The summit offered clear direction on where the country’s climate-investment landscape is headed, underscoring that climate tech has decisively moved beyond experimentation and is now entering a scale-ready phase across mobility, energy, waste and agri-value chains. At Green Frontier Capital, we remain steadfastly committed to India’s green future. Bridging innovation with market-level adoption and backing founders who are building commercially viable solutions to India’s most pressing climate challenges,” said Karan Mehta, Venture Principal, Green Frontier Capital.

The Indian Venture and Alternate Capital Association (IVCA) is a not-for-profit apex industry body promoting the alternate capital industry and fostering a vibrant investing ecosystem in India. The association is committed to supporting the ecosystem by facilitating advocacy with the Government of India, policymakers and regulators. It represents more than 500 funds with a combined AUM of over 350 billion dollars. These funds invest in emerging companies, venture growth, buyout, special situations, distressed assets, credit and venture debt, among others.