Argus Partners

Corporate and M&A; Private Equity & Venture Capital

Partner

Ashwin Krishnan is a seasoned corporate and commercial lawyer with significant expertise in general corporate advisory, mergers & acquisitions, venture capital, and private equity transactions.

While sector-agnostic in his practice, he has advised a wide array of clients across industries including artificial intelligence, biotechnology, e-commerce, financial services, food & beverages, healthcare, SaaS, technology, manufacturing, logistics, and more. His practice covers key areas such as corporate structuring, India entry strategies, investments, acquisitions, divestments and exits, joint ventures, business collaborations, intellectual property protections, management and employee incentive structures, other business and commercial agreements, as well as general Indian law and regulatory compliance.

Ashwin brings a deep understanding of both business and legal frameworks and his experience of having worked with entrepreneurs, investment funds, startups to large corporations, and having seen organizations across their growth lifecycle, allows him to effectively navigate complex matters and consistently provide his clients with practical, solution-oriented legal advice.

Outside of work, Ashwin enjoys his long drives, travelling and is a big sports enthusiast with a passion for football.

Prior to Argus, Ashwin was a partner at IndusLaw, Bengaluru.

Ashwin completed his BBA-LL.B. from Symbiosis Law School, Pune.

Select Professional Experience

Advised Accel, a leading VC fund, on multiple investments, including Mynvax, a biotech startup involved in vaccine-related R&D; Jiraaf, a fintech company; Onesto Labs, a cosmetics manufacturer with popular D2C brands “Bare Anatomy,” “Chemist at Play,” “SunScoop”.

Advised Accel, a leading VC fund, on multiple investments, including Dhiwise, a SaaS company; Eruditus, an edtech company, in relation to its USD 650 million financing round led by Accel and SoftBank Vision Fund; and Cogoport, a logistics tech company.

Advised Automated Workflow Private Limited (Candela Labs), an Indian tech firm specialising in automation and digital solutions for insurance firms, on its acquisition by Azentio Software, a Singapore-headquartered software products business.

Advised Arzooo, a retail tech and consumer electronics company, on multiple funding rounds, internal restructuring, advertising arrangements, and general corporate advisory.

Advised Chaipoint, a leading F&B company, on multiple funding rounds and general advisory matters.

Advised multiple institutional investors on the Series E round of investments in Agrostar, an agri-tech company, and on their stake sales in Agrostar.

Advised Curefit, a unicorn in the fitness and healthcare sector, on multiple investment rounds, including USD 75 million Series E round from Tata Digital; and USD 150 million Series F round led by Zomato.

Advised Curefit on multiple acquisitions, including Fitness First India, a leading fitness centre operator; Azani, a nutraceutical and cosmetics company; Fitternity, a fitness facility aggregator; and Onyx, a US-based digital fitness software company.

Advised Dunzo, a hyperlocal delivery startup, on its Series D and Series E funding rounds.

Advised Epic! Creations, Inc., a US-based edtech firm, as its India counsel, on its USD 500 million acquisition by Byju’s.

Advised ESG First Fund, an ESG-focused fund, on its investment in INI Farms, an agri-tech company.

Advised GGV VII Investments Pte. Ltd. and Gemini Investments Limited, prominent global investment funds, on their investment in Rupeek Fintech Private Limited as part of its USD 33 million Series E funding round.

Advised Groww, a unicorn in the financial services sector, on multiple portfolio investments, including in Digio, a fintech SaaS company.

Advised a leading Indian tech MNC renowned in the advertising and digital marketing sector on its acquisition of a news reading and insights discovery platform.

Advised Mynvax, a biotech startup, on its fundraising activities and commercial arrangements for vaccine development.

Advised Nexus Ventures and another leading investment fund on their investment in Turtlemint, an insurtech company, as part of its USD 120 million Series E funding round.

Advised a global leader in audience measurement, data, and analytics on compliance analysis of a mobile application, including Indian data privacy laws.

Advised Paragon Partners, a prominent private equity fund, on its investment in Maini Precision Products Limited, a manufacturer of precision parts for automotive, industrial, defence, and aerospace sectors.

Advised Plaeup, a new-age footwear company, on multiple fundraising activities, internal structuring, and general advisory matters.

Advised the acquirers on their acquisition of a badminton team franchise participating in the Premier Badminton League in India.

Advised Ujjivan Financial Services Limited, a listed NBFC-MFI, on setting up its small finance bank and related restructuring activities following RBI approval.

Advised Upstox, a unicorn in the financial services sector, on multiple funding rounds and general advisory matters.

Advised Vertex Ventures, a leading VC firm, on its stake sale in Busybees Logistics Solutions Private Limited (XpressBees), one of India’s largest e-commerce logistics players.

Advised Zerodha, India’s largest stock broking company, on its joint venture with wealth management company Smallcase.

Bar Council of Karnataka.