New Delhi, Apr 12 (IANS): Meta (formerly Facebook) on Tuesday announced to onboard Sequoia Capital along with others to accelerate the growth of small and medium businesses (SMBs) in the country.

This is the second time that Sequoia India is participating in the VC Brand Incubator Initiative by Meta.

Surge, Sequoia India's rapid scale-up programme, participated in the programme in February 2020, according to the company.

"Meta and Sequoia India are both working towards the common goal of unlocking more growth opportunities for small businesses in India," said Archana Vohra, Director, Small and Medium Businesses India at Meta.

Meta's VC Brand Incubator Initiative was launched in 2019 as an industry-first initiative to boost the growth of startups.

"Early-stage companies need access to tools and services that can support their growth and learning as they scale up. Meta's VC Brand Incubator Initiative allows these startups to access solutions and programs to aid this and we're excited to see this take shape," said Gayatri Yadav, Chief Marketing Officer, Sequoia India and Southeast Asia.

In less than three years, Meta has tied-up with 15 VC funds and has successfully skilled, trained, and mentored more than 450 small businesses at various stages of their growth.

In addition to Sequoia India, Meta has partnered with 14 other VC firms including Fireside Ventures, Elevation Capital [SAIF Partners], DSG Consumer Partners, Matrix Partners, Anthill Ventures and Stellaris Ventures, to name a few.