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STEPTRADE FUND

StepTrade Share Services Private Limited

About Company

StepTrade Capital, based in Ahmedabad, India, is an investment manager that focuses on small and micro businesses. Kresha Gupta, the youngest female fund manager in India, started the company. It manages over ₹350 crore in assets using SEBI-registered Alternative Investment Funds and Portfolio Management Services.

The company is well-known in the SME IPO market, often serving as an anchor investor using a research-based approach. Their main fund, the Chanakya Opportunities Fund, is the first AIF in India that is totally focused on small company stocks. StepTrade's goal is to achieve strong growth by investing in solid, creative small businesses.
 

This Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) strategy is structured with a clear objective—to capture opportunities that extend beyond traditional equity and debt markets, while maintaining a disciplined and well-defined investment approach.

Rather than relying on broad market exposure, the strategy focuses on selective participation, where capital is deployed with intent, backed by research, and aligned with long-term outcomes.

Strategy Overview

At its core, the strategy operates within a structured alternative investment framework, combining elements of growth, scalability, and market awareness.

It is designed to:

  • Identify opportunities across private markets and market-linked strategies
  • Maintain a balanced approach between growth potential and risk control
  • Follow a consistent investment philosophy across cycles

The emphasis is not just on accessing opportunities, but on how they are evaluated, selected, and managed over time.

Investment Approach

Portfolio construction follows a disciplined and methodical process, ensuring that each allocation is aligned with the broader strategy.

Key elements include:

  • Focused Opportunity Selection
    Investments are chosen based on strong fundamentals, scalability, or identifiable market inefficiencies
  • Phased Capital Deployment
    Capital is allocated over time to manage entry points and optimize exposure
  • Active Monitoring and Review
    Continuous tracking of performance, underlying progress, or market conditions
  • Adaptive Execution Within Defined Boundaries
    Flexibility is maintained, but always within the framework of the strategy

This approach ensures that the portfolio remains both structured and responsive, without becoming reactive.

Portfolio Positioning

The strategy is positioned to capture a mix of growth-driven and market-linked opportunities, depending on where relative value exists.

The portfolio typically reflects:

  • Exposure to scalable businesses, structured investments, or tactical market positions
  • A blend of high-conviction ideas and diversified allocation
  • Opportunities where execution, timing, or structural advantage plays a role

The objective is to create a portfolio that is purposeful in construction and balanced in exposure.

Nature of the Investment

This AIF strategy operates with characteristics that are distinct from traditional investments.

  • Defined investment horizon
    Structured around the lifecycle of the underlying opportunities
  • Selective liquidity profile
    Investments are held with a medium to long-term perspective
  • Multiple return drivers
    Performance may be linked to business growth, strategic execution, or market movements
  • Measured correlation to public markets
    Depending on allocation, the strategy may behave differently from traditional assets

The result is a framework where outcomes are driven by strategy execution rather than broad market direction alone.

Core Fundamentals

The strength of the strategy lies in its focus on fundamental drivers of value creation.

These include:

  • Quality and scalability of underlying opportunities
  • Clarity in investment thesis and execution roadmap
  • Alignment with long-term economic or market trends
  • Discipline in allocation, monitoring, and exit decisions

The intent is not to chase momentum, but to build positions that can deliver through structured progression.

Role Within a Portfolio

This AIF strategy is designed to act as a complementary allocation within a broader investment portfolio.

It can:

  • Provide exposure beyond traditional equity and fixed income
  • Introduce diversified return streams
  • Balance long-term investments with selective, strategy-driven opportunities

It works best as part of a portfolio that values diversification, structure, and differentiated exposure.

A Note on Expectations

Alternative investments require a more measured perspective.

  • Performance may not follow a linear path
  • Outcomes may take time to fully materialize
  • Interim visibility may differ from final results

However, the strategy remains anchored in consistent execution and long-term intent, rather than short-term market movements.

AIF investing isn’t limited by access—it’s defined by selection.

With multiple categories, strategies, and structures available, the challenge is rarely about finding an AIF. It’s about identifying the ones that genuinely align with your portfolio’s intent—whether that’s early-stage growth, structured private equity, or actively managed market strategies.

At AltPort Funds, you can explore a comprehensive universe of 1800+ AIF opportunities across Category I, II, and III—each evaluated through the lens of strategy clarity, risk framework, and long-term relevance.

The approach isn’t to present more choices—it’s to help you make better ones, with context and conviction.

Start a conversation to understand how AIFs can be positioned thoughtfully within your overall investment strategy—not just added to it.

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Fund Manager

Kresha Gupta

Kresha Gupta

Kresha Gupta is an investment professional who specializes in SME and microcap strategies, emphasizing disciplined research, risk management, and scalable growth opportunities. She is the Director and Fund Manager at Steptrade Capital, an investment management firm that operates in all three SEBI-registered AIF categories and holds an FPI license. Kresha, a Chartered Accountant who qualified at the age of 20, brings extensive financial knowledge and over seven years of experience in the capital markets. She oversees Steptrade Capital's SME and microcap investment initiatives, including the Chanakya Opportunities Fund—India's first SME-focused AIF—and the Steptrade Revolution Funds I and II. Her investment strategy is based on rigorous bottom-up research, promoter assessment, and identifying innovation-driven businesses with long-term value creation potential. Kresha's accomplishments demonstrate her enthusiasm for learning, adaptability, and unwavering commitment to promoting business growth in India. By constantly evolving her strategies and staying ahead of market trends, she remains committed to maximising value for her investors and shaping the future of investments. Her market insights and perspectives have been covered by CNBC Awaaz, Moneycontrol, the Economic Times, Business World, and the Financial Times. She is still making an impact on India's investment landscape today by using a data-driven, innovation-oriented, and institutionally aligned fund management approach.

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Disclaimer: Investing in AIF, PMS, Gift City or Mutual Fund is subject to market risk. Please read the related documents carefully. Past performance does not guarantee future results and there is no assurance that the managed accounts will necessarily achieve their objectives. Actual portfolios may differ as a result of account size, client-imposed investment restrictions, the timing of client investments and market, economic, and individual company factors. We at ALTPORT do not guarantee any returns in the hands of investors, nor do we take any sort of accountability for the performance of the scheme.

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