In 2016, four employees from Flipkart, Lalit Keshre, Harsh Jain, Ishan Bansal, and Neeraj Singh, took a bold leap of faith. They left their secure jobs to embark on a mission to simplify investing for millions in India. This mission gave birth to Groww in 2017, a platform designed to democratize financial investment by making it accessible and straightforward for the average Indian. Here’s a closer look at the founders, the journey of Groww, and the investors backing its ambitious vision.
Groww’s Founders
Lalit Keshre spearheads Groww as its CEO, focusing on product development and enhancing customer experience. Before Groww, Lalit was instrumental in launching Flipkart Quick and the Flipkart Marketplace. He also has a background in entrepreneurship with Eduflix, an online learning platform, and was part of Ittiam Systems. Lalit is an alumnus of IIT Bombay. As the COO, Harsh Jain drives growth and business strategies at Groww. Prior to this venture, he contributed to product management at Flipkart and co-founded a storytelling startup. Harsh holds a B-Tech in Electrical Engineering and a Masters in Information and Communication Engineering from IIT Delhi, along with an MBA from UCLA School of Management. Neeraj Singh oversees product development and customer research at Groww. An engineering enthusiast, Neeraj previously worked as an engineering manager at Flipkart, where he developed the customer returns and refund system. He holds a BE in Information Technology from ITM, Gwalior, and a PG Diploma in Advanced Computing from CDAC. Ishan Bansal manages the financial operations of Groww. His professional background includes corporate development roles at Flipkart and Naspers. Ishan is a BITS Pilani graduate, has an MBA in Finance from XLRI, Jamshedpur, and is a CFA charter holder.
The History of Groww
The inception of Groww was driven by the founders’ realization that investing in financial products in India was unnecessarily complex. Despite nearly 200 million people having investable income, only 20 million actively invested. Groww set out to change this by providing a platform that simplifies investing, making it more approachable for the masses. After extensive market research and numerous experiments to perfect the user experience, Groww launched in 2017 as a direct mutual fund distribution platform. Within a year, it became one of the country’s most popular mutual fund investment platforms. Responding to user demand, Groww expanded its offerings in 2020 to include stocks, digital gold, ETFs, intraday trading, and IPOs. Today, Groww serves over 15 million users across 900+ cities in India.
Funding and Investor Details
Groww has attracted significant investment from renowned firms in the fintech space, validating its vision of democratizing investing in India. In October 2021, Groww raised $251 million in Series E funding at a valuation of $3 billion. This round was led by ICONIQ Growth, with participation from Alkeon, Lone Pine Capital, and Steadfast, along with existing investors like Sequoia Capital India, Ribbit Capital, YC Continuity, Tiger Global, and Propel Venture Partners. Similar substantial funding rounds have been secured in the past, showcasing strong investor confidence in Groww’s mission and potential.
Lalit Keshre’s Inspiring Journey
Lalit Keshre’s journey from a farming background in Lepa village, Madhya Pradesh, to leading India’s largest brokerage firm is a testament to perseverance and ambition. Encouraged by his father to pursue education, Lalit excelled academically, eventually earning a spot at IIT Bombay. Before Groww, Lalit faced setbacks with an earlier startup but used those experiences to fuel his next venture. His role at Flipkart as a product manager laid the groundwork for his entrepreneurial vision. Despite the success at Flipkart, Lalit chose to follow his entrepreneurial dream, leading to the creation of Groww. Under Lalit’s leadership, Groww has grown to offer a wide array of investment options, including stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, IPOs, US stocks, futures and options, fixed deposits, and gold. His story is a powerful example of how resilience and an entrepreneurial spirit can transform personal dreams into a platform that significantly impacts a nation’s financial landscape.