In an interview to CNBC-TV18, Bipul Sinha, Co-Founder and CEO of Rubrik, expressed enthusiasm about the Indian market, stating, “We continue to be very excited about the opportunity in the Indian market, not just in terms of the talent in products and technology and other functions, but also the Indian economy and Indian businesses. If you think about Digital India, digital is the important part of Digital India.”
Highlighting India’s digital transformation initiatives, Sinha noted the critical need for cybersecurity in ensuring seamless digital services in sectors like healthcare and education.
He elaborated, “Digital trust is critical. Having your applications and business up and running, irrespective of cyber-attacks, particularly in the geopolitical context of India, offers Rubrik a tremendous opportunity to help businesses and government confidently deliver digital transformation.”
Rubrik’s journey in India began around 2017-2018, and the company has since grown its team in the country to over 1,000 employees. Looking ahead, Sinha disclosed plans for substantial investments, amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars, to capitalise on the vast market potential.
The company is already making significant inroads across industries. “We have the top three of the top eight private banks in India. We have the top two of the top five global GSIs (global system integrators), large outsourcing companies out of India. We are in pharma, we are in fintech,” Sinha said, adding that Rubrik is engaging with leading companies to make digital India more secure and trusted.
In a separate development, retail advisory platform Univest has successfully raised $10 million in a Series A funding round led by Bertelsmann India Investments (BII). This follows a $1.5 million seed funding round from notable investors, including Trinity Media Group, Akash Anand, and Deep Bajaj.
The fresh capital will propel Univest’s mission to democratise access to high-quality research and provide a comprehensive brokerage offering for retail investors. “We aim to make Univest the most powerful super application for retail investors. The funds will be utilised to scale our recently launched brokerage services, enhance our technology stack, and boost brand awareness in the market,” said Pranit Arora, Co-Founder and CEO of Univest.
The COVID-19 pandemic saw a surge in retail investor participation in stock markets, but a lack of organised guidance left many struggling with poor investment decisions. “Timely entry and exit strategies were major pain points for retail investors. We addressed this by combining artificial and human intelligence to deliver high-quality advisory services at an affordable cost,” Arora explained. “This approach has driven a 10x growth in our business over the past year,” Arora said.
Univest operates on a subscription-based revenue model, offering a freemium structure where the first five transactions are free. Paid plans are available for three months to five years, covering equity, futures, options, and commodities.
The startup is currently at an annual recurring revenue (ARR) of ₹100 crore. With strategic integration and support from Bertelsmann India Investments, Arora is optimistic about scaling to an ARR of ₹1,500 crore within the next two and a half years.
Additionally, Samhita R, Co-Founder and CEO of Resilience AI, outlined the company’s strategy for leveraging its $1 million seed funding to enhance climate risk management solutions for private and public enterprises. The funding round was spearheaded by Kalaari Capital’s CXXO Initiative, which focuses on supporting women-led ventures, with additional backing from Java Capital.
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