AppDynamics founder, Jyoti Bansal, against protected tech market
, TNN|
Mar 05, 2018, 10.22 AM IST
"I think Indian local IPO markets should emerge to allow those exits — they won’t be billion-dollar companies, but they could be a very healthy $100-300 million-value companies," he said
MUMBAI: Silicon Valley-based entrepreneur Jyoti Bansal, who sold his company AppDynamics to Cisco for $3.7 billion last year, says it’s time for the Indian IPO market to allow for exits — especially in the business-to-business (B2B) sector — for $100-300 million-valued startups instead of waiting for outsized returns. The IIT-Delhi graduate shares with TOI his views on the domestic startup ecosystem. Excerpts:
You spent the last two weeks interacting with startups here. What did you make of how things are in India?
Overall, I am pretty excited. A thriving startup ecosystem needs an entrepreneurial mindset in society, access to venture capital, big pool of technology talent, and some success stories and examples for others to look up to. While the Indian startup ecosystem is not as mature as Silicon Valley, there is a strong foundation being formed and I think India could become one of the top 5-6 startup ecosystems in the world.
How do you view Indian startups fighting global players like Amazon & Uber?
Indian companies I believe will fight and adapt over time. Wishing for a protected market like China is not the solution, these startups will have to find a way to compete. Deep-pocketed investors like SoftBank will continue to help level the playing field in terms of access to cash, but operating margins and path to profitability will be key.
How about exits for B2B companies?
There is a bit of rethinking needed. There are two kinds of companies — one selling primarily to the US, Europe markets, and then the ones selling primarily in India, Middle East, Southeast Asia. India doesn’t have too many of the first kind yet. But for the second kind, a new exit strategy is needed rather than forcing them to start selling to US markets where they may not have a product fit. I think Indian local IPO markets should emerge to allow those exits — they won’t be billion-dollar companies, but they could be a very healthy $100-300 million-value companies.
You spent the last two weeks interacting with startups here. What did you make of how things are in India?
Overall, I am pretty excited. A thriving startup ecosystem needs an entrepreneurial mindset in society, access to venture capital, big pool of technology talent, and some success stories and examples for others to look up to. While the Indian startup ecosystem is not as mature as Silicon Valley, there is a strong foundation being formed and I think India could become one of the top 5-6 startup ecosystems in the world.
How do you view Indian startups fighting global players like Amazon & Uber?
Indian companies I believe will fight and adapt over time. Wishing for a protected market like China is not the solution, these startups will have to find a way to compete. Deep-pocketed investors like SoftBank will continue to help level the playing field in terms of access to cash, but operating margins and path to profitability will be key.
How about exits for B2B companies?
There is a bit of rethinking needed. There are two kinds of companies — one selling primarily to the US, Europe markets, and then the ones selling primarily in India, Middle East, Southeast Asia. India doesn’t have too many of the first kind yet. But for the second kind, a new exit strategy is needed rather than forcing them to start selling to US markets where they may not have a product fit. I think Indian local IPO markets should emerge to allow those exits — they won’t be billion-dollar companies, but they could be a very healthy $100-300 million-value companies.
(This article was originally published in The Times of India)
