Mumbai: Venture capital firm Battery Ventures plans to set up its India office by November. The Boston-based firm with $3 billion (Rs12,945 crore) under management will have two members based in Mumbai.

The firm made its first India investment in Bangalore’s Tejas Networks Pvt. Ltd in 2004 and has invested in three other firms since, but it has not had a direct presence in the country.

“Our number of India investments has been increasing, and (local presence) will give us more opportunities,” says its partner Gautam Patel, who will relocate to India from the US later this year. In setting up its India office, Battery follows US-based venture capital firms Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ) and Norwest Venture Partners, which opened India offices in the last nine months. Like them, it will invest out of its global $750 million fund rather than raising a dedicated India fund.

Battery will do both early-stage venture funding as well as larger, private equity deals, ranging $2-50 million a deal. “We have seen (funds) here either follow a strategy exactly like their US one, or try to do everything. We are trying to strike a balance between the two,” says Mark Sherman, its general partner.

Unlike many US-based funds expanding into other geographies, Battery does not have a China presence. Similar to venture capital firm Canaan Partners, it will focus only on the India and Israel markets outside its home territory.

In India, it will focus on media, financial services and technology. It sees opportunities in mobile payment, mobile advertising and managed IT platform services. Besides Tejas, it has invested in online travel site Travelguru.com, transaction services firm TechProcess Solutions Ltd and credit bureau High Mark Credit Information Services Pvt Ltd.