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IDFC FIRST Bank MD & CEO V. Vaidyanathan: India's Startup Ecosystem is Thriving
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Forbes India•30-09-2026, 20:02
IDFC FIRST Bank MD & CEO V. Vaidyanathan: India's Startup Ecosystem is Thriving
- •V. Vaidyanathan, MD & CEO of IDFC FIRST Bank, believes now is the best time ever to start a business in India, citing a fundamentally changed infrastructure for entrepreneurs.
- •The Indian startup ecosystem has evolved significantly over the past decade, offering digital infrastructure, AI, venture capital, and mentorship, making it easier for founders to build enduring businesses.
- •A new generation of entrepreneurs, including college students, are actively pursuing startup ideas with less capital and permission, leveraging cloud infrastructure, ubiquitous payments, and AI.
- •India's startup wave is moving beyond services to more ambitious innovations like rockets and deep-tech, with initiatives like Leap To Unicorn supporting this shift.
- •While capital access is improving with domestic pools and patient funding needed for deep-tech, customer feedback and strong governance are crucial for credibility and attracting investors.
Key Questions Answered
V. Vaidyanathan states that the infrastructure surrounding Indian entrepreneurs has fundamentally changed, offering cloud infrastructure, ubiquitous payments, AI, and a supportive startup ecosystem that did not exist a decade ago.
Leap To Unicorn Season 4 is a founder success initiative by IDFC FIRST Bank in association with Moneycontrol and CNBC-TV18. It introduces dedicated tracks across Fintech, Deeptech & AI, ESG, and D2C, complete with bootcamps, mentor networks, and evaluation frameworks.
IDFC FIRST Bank currently works with around 38,000 startups, including companies operating at very early stages.
