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Prayank Swaroop is a Partner at Accel, and joined the firm in 2011.
He focuses on cybersecurity, developer tools, marketplaces, and SaaS investments. Some of the investments led by him are - Aavenir, Bizongo, Maverix, OnsiteGo, Securden, Slintel, Skeps, and Zetwerk.
Prior to Accel, he worked at Adobe and Standard Chartered Bank in India and Singapore. He held positions across engineering, product marketing, pre-sales, and product management.
He has an integrated master's degree in Mathematics and Computing from IIT Delhi and an MBA from the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad.
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Episode Notes:
What made Prayank take a bet on venture as a career path (3:38) Naivety in venture capital (7:10) Where is venture as of October 2023, post the global slow down (9:50) Sectors that have shown massive potential in spite of it being a dull year in terms of venture activity (18:18) Insights gained by Prayank over the course of his ten years of investment experience (22:15) How to evaluate people as an investor (27:38) How would Prayank rebuild his career as an investor if given a chance to restart (38:37) Advice to founders (48:15). . .
Social Links:
Follow Prayank on Twitter Follow â Prayank on LinkedInâ Follow â The Desi VC on LinkedInâ Follow â Akash Bhat on Twitterâ Follow â Akash Bhat on LinkedIn -
Priya Saiprasad is a General Partner at Touring Capital, a fund investing in enterprise-focused AI powered global startups. She co-founded Touring after 13 years in venture capital, M&A and enterprise technology.
She was most recently a Partner at SoftBank Vision Fund, where she led investments into category-defining software companies including Pixis, Vendr, Observe.ai, CommerceIQ, Sendoso and Skedulo.
Previously, Priya was at Mayfield Fund focused on early-growth investments, and a founding member of M12 (Microsoftâs Venture Fund), where she led investments in Go1, Workboard, PandaDoc, Element AI (acquired by ServiceNow), and Bonsai (acquired by Microsoft). Prior to that, she was a Deal Lead in Squareâs M&A team leading acquisitions at the intersection of software and machine learning.
Priya was recognized by Forbes in 2018 as part of their 30 under 30 in Venture Capital list. She is actively involved with All Raise, Neythri, and several prominent Women in Tech associations. Priya holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley.
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Episode Notes:
How did Priya end up in venture (2:36) What about venture surprised Priya the most (6:00) Insecurities as/of an investor (11:25) Learnings as an investor when investments havenât really worked out (17:02) How can one acquire the skills to assist founders, even if they haven't personally experienced those challenges? (25:05) Investing is personal: Do investors derive guidance from aspects of their life when making investment decisions? (29:35) How does competition drive investors (34:52) Prestige and perception in venture (41:30) Advice Priya would give her younger self (47:20). . .
Social Links:
Follow â Priya on Twitterâ Follow â Priya on LinkedInâ Follow â The Desi VC on LinkedInâ Follow â Akash Bhat on Twitterâ Follow â Akash Bhat on LinkedIn -
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Rohit Bansal is the Co-founder Snapdeal, one of the largest online marketplaces in India. The company has raised over $1.7B from eBay, Kalaari Capital, Nexus Venture Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners, Intel Capital, BlackRock, Temasek Holdings and SoftBank. He is also the Co-Founder of Titan Capital, which has invested in companies such as Mamaearth, Dealshare, OLA, RazorPay and OfBusiness. He an alumnus of Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.
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Episode Notes:
Introduction (2:00) What motivated Rohit to become an entrepreneur (2:57) Why is entrepreneurship on the rise in India (10:30) How did Rohit get into investing (14:30) How did and does Rohit deal with tough moments in life (19:26) How do founders continue to stay motivated over the years (27:58) What frameworks does Rohit deploy to navigate tough situations in life (31:39) Why itâs important for founders to look after themselves (36:20) Looking back at his career what is Rohit the most proud of? (41:15) What is Rohit dedicating the next 5-10 years of his life towards (45:45) What advice would Rohit give his younger self? (52:02). . .
Social Links:
Follow Rohit on Twitter Follow Rohit on LinkedIn Follow The Desi VC on LinkedIn Follow Akash Bhat on Twitter Follow Akash Bhat on LinkedIn -
Shubham Goel is the Co-foudner and Co-CEO of Affinity, a relationship intelligence platform for dealmakers. The company has raised over $120M in funding from Menlo Ventures, MassMutual Ventures, Pear VC and Advance Venture Partners. Prior to Affinity, Shubham completed his BS in Computer Science at Stanford University.
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Episode notes:
What made Shubham pick entrepreneurship (2:00) Propensity of risk increasing as the company grows (6:08) The journey until the ah-ha moment (10:06) The aha-moment (17:00) Unlocking the operator and leader persona as a founder (25:15) Getting the most out of your teams as a leader (31:10) Things that have surprised Shubham in the company building journey (37:15) What would Shubham do differently if he were to build Affinity from scratch today? (43:54). . .
Social links:
Follow Shubham on Twitter Follow The Desi VC Podcast on Twitter Follow Akash Bhat on Twitter -
Sumeet Mehta is the co-founder and CEO of LEAD, an edtech company helping digitize and transform affordable private schools to better serve students from middle and low-income groups of families. Before co-founding LEAD, Sumeet was Chief Executive Officer at Zee Learn (2007-2012). He transformed the institution from a pre-school franchise company to an education company with a presence in pre-schools and K-10 schools, and science activity and animation classes. Prior to that, Sumeet spent eight years at Procter & Gamble Singapore, where he was involved in in brand management, leading businesses in Australia, Southeast Asia, and India. Sumeet is an alumnus of IIM-Ahmedabad and PEC Chandigarh.
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Episode Notes:
Introduction (1:40) How and why did Sumeet co-found LEAD? (3:08) How do you 'figure out' your mission as a founder? (8:18) Do founders take time to introspect about their personal growth? If they do, how frequently do they engage in this practice, and what methods do they employ? (14:23) How can a founder effectively address and manage their insecurities while continually learning and growing in their role? (19:20) What has Sumeet learned about himself over the course of his entrepreneurial journey (24:00) The toughest part of building a company (28:36) Working with your significant other as a co-founder (32:08) Non-negotiables as a founder (34:50)Fostering a culture of long-term thinking among employees (39:02)
Advice Sumeet would offer his younger self (41:11). . .
Social links:
Follow Sumeet on Twitter Follow LEAD on LinkedIn Follow The Desi VC Podcast on Twitter Follow Akash Bhat on Twitter Follow Akash Bhat on Instagram -
Sankar Bora is the Co-founder & COO, Dealshare, a social ecommerce startup in India, that has raised close to $400M in venture money from marquee investors such as Alpha Wave Global, Tiger Global, Matrix India, Alteria Capital and WestBridge Capital. Prior to this, he co-founded Myntra in 2007, which was sold to Flipkart in 2010.
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Episode Notes:
Why entrepreneurship? (2:30) What gave Sankar the conviction to embark on the path of entrepreneurship (5:50) Early days of Mantra (10:32) A few mistakes made at Myntra (14:25) How to pick co-founders? (20:34) Learnings from building Myntra (22:50) Validating the thesis around Dealshare (27:50) What did Sankar get right about building Dealshare and early signs of success (33:45) Understanding the diversity of Indian customers Nurturing consistency at Dealshare (43:25) What has entrepreneurship taught Sankar (46:20). . .
Social Links:
Dealshare on Twitter: https://twitter.com/dealshareindia
Sankar on Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/SankarBora6
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Aloke Bajpai is the Co-founder and CEO of ixigo.com a platform that aggregates and compares real-time travel information, prices and availability for flights, trains, buses, and hotels, and allows ticket booking through its associate websites and apps. Since ixigo's launch in 2007, the company has gone from a bootstrapped startup to Indiaâs leading travel search and planning business, with over 20 million active users every month across mobile and web.
Aloke graduated from IIT Kanpur in 2001 and started his career at Amadeus in Europe where he held key product and technology roles, building and managing large scale web-based products and networks for the first four years of his career. He then went to INSEAD for his MBA, and returned to India to build ixigo.
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Episode Notes:
Intro (2:15) Why entrepreneurship (4:11) What frameworks did Aloke decide to take the plunge into entrepreneurship (11:20) Why did Aloke pick travel as an industry to disrupt (14:35) The Aha-moment for Ixigo (17:38) Conversations with VCs in the early-stages (24:15) How did Aloke and team convince their first investors (30:00) Leveraging VCs to grow the company (32:40) Evolution of Alokeâs leadership styles over the Yeats (37:40) How do you build a strong internal company culture (42:15) How did Ixigo navigate the pandemic and the challenges that came with it? (46:50) Overall learnings building Ixigo (55:20) Advice to younger self (59:18). . .
Social Links:
ixigo on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ixigo
Aloke on Twitter: https://twitter.com/alokebajpai
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Rajat Tandon is the President of IVCA, India's apex body representing the interests of PE/VC industry, Real estate, Infrastructure and Credit funds, Limited Partners, Family offices & Corporate VC's. Rajat leads the planning, development, and implementing IVCAâs regulatory advocacy activities, while also effectively influencing regulatory outcomes in support of the alternate asset class.
Previously, Rajat was part of the leadership team at NASSCOM, where he headed NASSCOMâs 10,000 Startups initiative, providing crucial support to technology startups in India.
With his early stint as entrepreneur and extensive corporate experience in the IT & Telecom and GIS/Navigable maps, Rajat competently bridges the gap between boardroom expertise and on-the-ground experience. Over the past 25+ years, he has worked in various positions ranging from technical support, sales leadership, service delivery to strategic initiatives at Siemens, Nortel, and Nokia.
Rajat also brings with him his extensive network in the startups space, having worked closely with most of the eminent industry leaders. His knowledge of the startup ecosystem, its constituents, successes, opportunities, and challenges run deep. He is also a member of CII National Start-up Council.
A Post-Graduate in Business Management from the Indian Institute of Management Technology (IIMT), Ghaziabad, Rajat also has a Bachelorâs degree in Engineering from Pune University. When not busy with the VC-PE and startup communities, you will find him spending quality time with family or enjoying a game of Golf.â
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Episode Notes:
Introduction (2:00) The evolution of the Indian VC ecosystem in the past decade (3:20) IVCA's pivotal role in the advancement of the Indian VC ecosystem (5:06) Rajat's career path (7:45) IVCA's remarkable milestones and contributions (17:55) Envisioning a thriving startup ecosystem (26:04) Inspiring success stories from India's vibrant startup landscape (42:20) Rajat's lasting legacy: Shaping the future of Venture Capital (51:29). . .
Social Links:
IVCA on Twitter: https://twitter.com/indianvca
Rajat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rajattandy
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Rohit Sood is the Partner at Bertelsmann India Investments (BII), an investment firm that invests in companies in the digital, education, media, and services sectors. The firm also focuses on early-stage, as well as growth-stage investments. Rohit was the founding team member and has been part of Bertelsmann from Day 0 having seen the growth of the fund over the last decade as well played an instrumental part in shaping Indiaâs startup ecosystem. Prior to Bertelsmann, he spent some time at Deutche Bank and holds an MBA from IIM-Kohzikode with a Bachelors from IIT Delhi.
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Episode Notes:
Intro (1:50) Why did Rohit pick a career in venture (3:42) Trading vs venture capital (7:30) Indian growth story: 2010-present (10:37) Learnings from backing companies that havenât scaled as per expectations (16:10) How does Berterslman conduct its post mortem on startups (20:40) How does one build a great working relationship with their portfolio founders and guide them (28:06) How and what do investors mean when they talk about market? (32:42) Can the market be manipulated (35:42) Thoughts on investing in the âValley of deathâ (41:15) Exits for VCs (50:10) Insights from investing in winners (54:50) What can we expect from India in the coming years (1:03:01) How has Rohit evolved as an investor over the years (1:07:30). . .
Social Links:
BII on Twitter: https://twitter.com/biifund
Rohit on Twitter: https://twitter.com/doostihor
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Saurabh Saxena is a serial edtech entrepreneur who has co-founded Lakshya, Vedantu and Power Club (previously known as Uable). He has been an educator and Edtech entrepreneur for 15 years now. After graduating from IIT Roorkee in 2005 he started Lakshya, a chain of offline learning centres. After a successful exit, Saurabh then co-founded Vedantu in 2012 which then went on to become one of the leading online test prep companies. Shortly after becoming a parent himself, Saurabh realised that our current education system does not prepare our children with real-world life skills required to lead a happy and successful life. That led him to found his third edtech venture, Power Club, aimed at preserving and nurturing our childrenâs creative intelligence and preparing them for an uncertain future.
Links to topics discussed: Poistive Intelligence and Letter to younger self by Salman Khan (Khan Academy)
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Episode Notes:
Intro (1:43) Why entrepreneurship? (2:32) Why is Saurabh passionate about education (6:32) Takeways from building three companies in edtech (9:35) Aha-moments while building Vedantu and Lakshya (22:00) How should founders think about scale (27:50) How has Saurabh matured and evolved as a founder (31:50) How to build mission-driven businesses (39:50) Frameworks for decision-making and navigating tough days as a founder (43:35) How does Saurabh leverage his success to motivate him further (51:52) Advice to his younger self (55:55). . .
Social Links:
Powerclub on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/join.power.club/
Saurabh on Twitter: https://twitter.com/saurabh_learn
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Nandini Mansinghka is the CEO of Mumbai Angels, an investment firm that now operates under the 360 One umbrella. She came on board as the third Co-Founder, operating partner, and CEO in 2017. She has vast years of experience across the Investment Banking, Media, and Education industries and worked for 5+ years with J.P. Morgan in India in leadership positions in the Investment Banking research group. Before J.P. Morgan, she has worked for over 5 years with the Times of India Group. She also holds a professional degree as a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Episode Notes:
Intro (2:11) Career trajectory (3:40) The role of families in career progression (17:11) Nandini's stint as an entrepreneur (23:49) Growth of the average Indian angel investor in the last 5-10 years (34:15) Mumbai Angels' deal flow management in the context of macro trends explained (49:53) The role of Mumbai Angels in the next chapter of India's growth (57:00) -
Dr. Pankaj Jethwani is the Executive Vice President at W Health Ventures, a Boston-based venture capital firm focused on helping entrepreneurs build the future of healthcare delivery in the US and India. Over the last ten years, Dr. Jethwani has been involved in improving care delivery in several care settings in the US and India as a physician leader, operator, management consultant, and investor.
Dr. Jethwani started his career as a Primary Care Physician in Mumbai, India. Through this experience, he witnessed first-hand the gaps in health care delivery in both the public and private sectors. Motivated to bring about reform in this system, he joined The Boston Consulting Group in India where he helped shape BCGâs work with Government agencies to improve delivery of healthcare at scale. He later co-founded The Breakfast Revolution (TBR), a social enterprise fighting the malnutrition epidemic in India. TBR has served 220,000+ children over 20 million fortified meals.
More recently, Pankaj worked at Iora Health, a Boston-based innovative primary care company that serves seniors on Medicare. This experience helped shape his perspective on building and scaling a technology-enabled value-based care organization, taking global risk, and creating a delightful model of care for patients and providers. At W Health Ventures, Dr. Jethwani leads investments in disruptive technology-enabled healthcare services companies in the US and India. Pankaj holds an MBBS (MD-equivalent) degree from MUHS (India) and received an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.Episode Notes:
Introduction (2:30) How did Pankaj venture into the world of VC following his career as a doctor? (3:05) Which is more challenging: transitioning into VC or practicing medicine? (6:12) Insights gained from Pankaj's experience as an operator (8:44) The healthcare industry in India: an in-depth analysis (17:48) The transformative impact of VC in healthcare: an exploration (31:11) Valuable lessons derived from high-performing portfolios (36:47) W Health Ventures' investment strategy and approach (44:53) The pivotal role of capital in shaping India's healthcare landscape (51:20) Unlocking growth and fortifying the Indian healthcare industry (55:40) Words of wisdom Pankaj would impart to his younger self (58:25) -
Saurabh Pandey, co-founder and CEO of EloElo. EloElo is an app that enables live-social experiences through games and entertainment. It is currently among the top 10 Apps on the Google Play Store in India with over 10M downloads. It accommodates 34,000 creators and offers a staggering 400 million minutes of live content. The company has raised $15M from Kalaari Capital, KB Investment, Lumikai, WaterBridge Ventures and Better Capital.
Before Eloelo, he accumulated a decade of experience in various domains such as marketing, product and growth at Flipkart and P&G.
Episode notes:
Introduction (2:05) Rationale behind entrepreneurship: Saurabh's motivation for founding EloElo (2:59) Resilience and conviction: Saurabh's renewed pursuit of entrepreneurship following a prior setback (10:25) Early Validation of EloElo (18:03) Standing out in a competitive landscape: EloElo's approach to capturing attention in the content and entertainment industry (26:16) Building alongside ICPs (34:14) The significance of timing in the company's growth trajectory (41:12) Insights gained as a CEO: Key lessons learned by Saurabh (49:18) Saurabh's framework for decision making (59:42) Non-negotiable principles: Saurabh's core values and beliefs (1:10:26) Saurabh's reflections â advice to the younger self (1:16:55). . .
Social Links:
EloElo on Twitter: https://twitter.com/eloeloapp
Saurabh on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Saurabh65616912
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Karan Desai is the Founder and Managing Partner at Interface Ventures, an early-stage venture fund based out of Mumbai, India. Heâs an operator turned investor who brings a diverse skill set that encompasses extensive experience in operations, investment banking, and financial consulting.
Prior to Interface, he was the Joint Managing Director at Trucap Finance Ltd., a rapidly expanding NBFC listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange which specializes in providing finance to MSME businesses in India.
In addition to this, Karan founded exerFIT, a globally recognized lifestyle nutrition and supplementation brand endorsed by top athletes and Bollywood stars.
Throughout his career, Karan has held key roles at distinguished brands such as Bank of America, PwC, Centrum Capital, and the HEAL Institute. His academic credentials include a Masters from the University of Westminster, London, and a Bachelors from Narsee Monjee College, Mumbai, where he graduated with distinction.
Episode Notes:
Intro (2:28) Journey into venture capital (3:53) How is Interface Ventures structured? (11:20) Looking back at Karan's founder stint: ExerFit (17:55) How to keep things lean and bootstrap (25:06) How does Karan invest, knowing what he knows today as a former founder? (29:25) How has venture impacted Karan as a person? (36:11) Learning from founders that Karan has invested in and worked with (40:56) Advice to a younger self (45:49). . .
Social links:
Interface Ventures on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/interfaceven/
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Yohei Nakajima is the General Partner at Untapped Capital, a pre-seed and seed-stage focused fund investing in under-represented founders in the US. At Untapped Capital, the sweet spot is investing $100k-$250k checks into startups based raising at $3-7m in valuation.
Yohei has been supporting early-stage startups for 15 years, originally starting on the community side organizing events and educational courses for founders out of coworking spaces. He has spent the last 7 on the investing side, initially at Techstars where he helped spin up the Disney Accelerator alongside The Walt Disney Company, followed by his role as Director of Pipeline, supporting all 30+ Techstars accelerator programs in recruiting the best startups worldwide. Prior to Untapped, he was at Scrum Ventures, where he led the development of Scrum Studio, designing, leading, and overseeing our partner programs with Nintendo, Dentsu, Panasonic.
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Episode Notes:
Intro (2:38) Why venture? (3:52) Thesis origin and resonance with founders (8:04) Yohei's builder persona and its influence on his investor persona (16:03) Sourcing through outbound (23:40) Non-negotiables as an investor (28:40) Knowledge sharing as a fund manager (33:34) Future of Untapped Capital (35:15) LP's learnings from Yohei (36:26) Advice for emerging fund managers (39:26) Fundraising surprises as a fund manager (42:05) Learnings from portfolio founders in early stages (44:52) Yohei's decision-making process and framework (48:48) Advice for his younger self (50:30). . .
Social Links:
Untapped Capital on Twitter: https://twitter.com/UntappedVC
Yohei on Twitter: https://twitter.com/yoheinakajima
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Prateek Agarwal is the Investment lead at First Cheque, a micro VC fund based out of Bangalore that invests $100K in pre-seed startups in India. Prior to this role, Prateek worked with the India Business Head at Dr. Reddy's where he was responsible for tracking business metrics, identifying areas of improvement, and leading strategic projects.
His background as both a consultant and operator at firms like Dr. Reddy's and EY has allowed him to develop skills in strategic planning, project management, and data analysis across multiple industries. Prateek's ability to shift between the big picture and details has also been strengthened through his diverse experiences.
First Cheque was originally conceived by India Quotient but is now an independent firm with its own brand. During its first fund, First Cheque worked with more than 20 venture partners and added over 100 startups to its portfolio, which includes well-known ventures such as Fashinza, Giva, Rocketlane, Fleetx, Wint Wealth, Plaza/Rigi, Global Fair, Drink Prime, and Bellatrix Aerospace.
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Nitin Jain is a well-known name in the Indian startup ecosystem as the co-founder and Chief Business Officer of OfBusiness, a tech-enabled platform that provides raw material procurement and credit solutions to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in India. With a strong background in structured solutions trading, Nitin has played a key role in OfBusiness' success, helping the company raise over $875M from top investors like Tiger Global, SoftBank Vision Fund, and Matrix Partners, among others. Today, OfBusiness is valued at around $5B and has become a leading player in the Indian SME ecosystem. Nitin Jain is an alumnus of the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and has had a successful career prior to his entrepreneurial journey.
Episode Notes:
Nitin Jain discusses his journey into entrepreneurship (2:10) Discovering Co-Founders and Creating the OfBusiness Idea (3:55) Nitin Jain shares his perspective on what's more critical: the team or the idea (6:30) The Early Days of OfBusiness: A Look Back at the "Aha Moment" (9:15) Coping with the Struggles and Insecurities of Being a Founder (12:30) Understanding the Composition of Winning Founding Teams (16:30) Nitin Jain's Unique Leadership Style and Approach (23:10) Fostering a People-First Culture at OfBusiness (27:10) Developing a Strong Company Culture as Companies Grow (29:18) How to Maximize the Benefits of Your Investors (32:22) Overcoming the Toughest Days as a Founder (39:20) Nitin Jain's Biggest Lesson as an Entrepreneur (41:57) Advice to His Younger Self: What Nitin Jain Would Have Done Differently (46:03). . .
Social Links:
OfBusiness on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ofbusiness_com
Abhishek Goyal on Twitter: https://twitter.com/njain351
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Beerud Sheth is the co-founder and CEO of Gupshup, the world's leading platform for cloud messaging and conversational experiences. It is used by over 30K+ developers and handles over 4.5 billion messages per month. The company has raised more than $480M from marquee investors such as Helion Venture Partners, Tiger Global, CRV, White Oak among many others.
He was previously the co-founder of Elance (now Upwork), the world's largest online services marketplace, which went public in 2018. Prior to founding Elance, he worked in the financial services industry â modeling, structuring, and trading fixed income securities and derivatives at Merrill Lynch and before that at Citicorp Securities. His graduate research, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technologyâs Media Lab, involved developing autonomous learning software agents for personalized news filtering.
Beerud earned an M.S. in computer science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology & a B.Tech in Computer Science from IIT Bombay.
Episode Notes:
What made Beerud an entrepreneur? (3:48) A Retrospective on the entrepreneurial journey (13:13) Unpacking the drive of serial entrepreneurs (20:15) The evolution of Beerud's entrepreneurial career (23:23) Navigating the pressures of entrepreneurship (28:30) Insights and guidance for first-time founders (32:40) The distinctive traits of exceptional founders (40:52) The founder's role in business pivots (43:50) Words of wisdom for his younger self (51:11). . .
Social Links:
Gupshup on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Gupshup
Beerud Sheth on Twitter: https://twitter.com/beerud
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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Abhishek Goyal is the Co-founder, Vice Chairman, and Executive Director of Tracxn, a leading research firm that provides market intelligence data on private companies. Since its founding in 2012, Tracxn has secured funding from top investors like 3one4 Capital, Elevation Capital, Prime Venture Partners, and angel investors including Sachin and Binny Bansal, and has grown to become a highly profitable business.
After much success, Tracxn debuted on the NSE in October 2022, becoming one of the few venture-backed startups to go public. Abhishek's strategic leadership and unwavering commitment to excellence have been vital in the growth and success of the company.
Before Tracxn, Abhishek gained experience working with esteemed organizations such as Amazon Development Centre (India) Private Limited, Yahoo Software Development India Private Limited, and Accel. He also served as a consultant with 3i Infotech Limited and Erasmic Consulting Private Limited.
Abhishek has been recognised as part of the '40 under 40' list by Fortune India in both 2018 and 2019, highlighting his success as a young entrepreneur. He holds a bachelor's degree in technology with a specialization in computer science and engineering from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur.
Episode Notes:
1. What was it like before and after Tracxn's IPO? (3:38)
2. Why did Tracxn's founders choose to go public instead of selling the company? (6:10)
3. How has Abhishek's leadership role changed since the IPO? (7:30)
4. How did Tracxn's investors learn about the IPO process, and what was their reaction? (15:53)
5. What's the best analogy for a company going public? (20:20)
6. Why did Abhishek choose to become an entrepreneur? (22:30)
7. What was Tracxn's first milestone? (26:00)
8. Would Abhishek do things differently if he had to build Tracxn again? (30:30)
9. What were some of the toughest days as a founder? (33:33)
10. What is Abhishek's superpower as an angel investor? (38:18)
11. What's the biggest lesson Abhishek has learned over his career? (44:23)
12. Abhishek tips on leadership and management (47:15)
13. What advice would Abhishek give his younger self? (57:00)
. . .
Social Links:
Tracxn on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Tracxn
Abhishek Goyal on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AbhishekTracxn
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
-
Sanam Rawal is the Founder and Partner at Metamorph (previously known as Passion Connect), a Blume Ventures-incubated human resource advisory platform that helps startups grow with talent acquisition, talent branding, acquisitions, research, learning and development and more. With offices in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, and Pune, Metamorph has assisted in the hiring of more than 800 candidates, including CEOs and senior vice presidents for well-known startups such as Unacademy, Slice, HealthifyMe, Dunzo, Cashify, Purplle, and many more.
Episode Notes:
1. How did Sanam become involved in the world of venture capital? (3:45)
2. Sanam's perspective on working within the Blume ecosystem (15:25)
3. A glimpse into the early days at Metamorph (18:36)
4. How does talent matching occur at the portfolio level? (26:08)
5. What makes founders choose to work with Metamorph despite having their own HR teams? (30:10)
6. The role of HR firms in M&A processes (35:04)
7. Overcoming challenges when working with portfolio startups (42:57)
8. Metamorph's strategy for hiring the best employees to support startup growth (48:45)
9. Addressing the reverse brain drain phenomenon (51:50)
10. Key takeaways from building and developing Metamorph (54:06)
11. Sanam's proudest achievement during her time at Metamorph (1:00:33)
. . .
Social Links:
Sanam Rawal on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sanam_Speaks
Podcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedesi_vc
Akash Bhat on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhatvakash
Podcast on Instagram: https://instagram.com/thedesivc
Akash Bhat on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bhatvakash
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