- Background of Mr Vittal Ramakrishna, Founder and CEO, POD Founders
Vittal Ramakrishna is a Serial Entrepreneur and the founder of POD, a full-stack fundraising platform with 30 funded startups to its credit. With over 14 years of global experience, Vittal has managed Multi-Million Dollar projects at KPMG and BOSCH.
He is an expert in Investment Management and Alternative Investments, having achieved a successful exit in Germany. Additionally, he is the founder of Kreate, a marketplace for Indian artisans on the brink of profitability. Vittal serves as an ambassador of GINSEP and is actively engaged in pioneering Cross-Border Investments and fostering synergies.
Neelendra Nath, the COO and Co-founder of POD, boasts a remarkable 13+ years of experience across a variety of sectors and geographies. With a background in Engineering & MBA, Neel has expanded his expertise through ventures in marketing, design thinking, advising startups and also establishing his own firm in London. Currently, Neel is leading the charge in revolutionizing startup investments with a cutting-edge line of tech-first product
- What are POD World’s suite of offerings? How do you create value for your stakeholders?
Here is an overview of the key features of www.podworld.in:
- Access to a large pool of potential investors
- Suite of tools and resources to enable startups with their fundraising efforts
- Opportunity to invest in early-stage startups with the potential for high returns
- Educational resources for startups and investors
- All-year round events such as pitches and community meetups
Although POD is a relatively new platform, it has already gained a significant following among startups and investors in India. The platform has been praised for its user-friendly features, comprehensive resources, dedicated services and its commitment to transparency.
- What role does technology play in your platform, and how do you see technology evolving fundraising efforts?
Technology plays a vital role in the platform that POD provides. The platform uses several technologies to facilitate the fundraising process for startups. These technologies include:
- A secure online platform: POD uses a secure online platform to allow startups to create their profiles, submit their pitch decks, and launch their fundraising campaigns. The platform is PCI-compliant and uses the latest security measures to protect the data of startups and investors.
- A simplified interface: POD has a simple, easy-to-use – easy to comprehend interface that makes it comfortable for startups and investors to use the platform. The interface is designed to be intuitive and easy to navigate.
- A communication platform: POD provides a communication platform that carries out activity to enable startups and investors to communicate with each other and share legal information and required documents.
- A payment processing system: POD uses a secure and reliable payment processing system that allows investors to invest in startups.
- A portfolio management system: POD provides investors with a portfolio management system that helps them view all their investments, related documents, and updates in one place.
- A shareholder management system: POD provides startups with a dashboard allowing them to view all potential and actual investors along with their level of interest in one place.
The use of technology has made it possible for POD to provide a platform that is easy to use, secure, and reliable. The platform has helped to make it easier for startups to raise money and for investors to find startups to invest in.
- How does your platform aim to strengthen venture capital generative AI startups?
When VCs are searching for AI startups, POD serves as a trusted platform for high-quality startup campaigns. Our internal team rigorously evaluates each startup before they are onboarded, ensuring that VCs can focus on finding quality deals, including those of startups in the AI generative space.
- Common challenges that ventures face when it comes to fundraising, and how does your platform address those challenges?
POD offers investors increased visibility to access a strong deal flow. Additionally, POD manages the operational aspects of fundraising for startups, simplifying what typically involves significant paperwork and communication among various stakeholders. Conversely, POD also facilitates connections between startups and potential investors.
- How do you ensure the legitimacy and authenticity of the organizations that participate in fundraising through its platform?
POD carries out KYC checks for each of the individual founders and the business entity that intends to raise funds through the platform. The vetting process includes verification of all the relevant documents from MCA records. In-house CA/CS/Legal team review and verify every detail submitted.
- Many Platforms are coming up in this space in the last 2 years. What is POD’s strategy to survive the competitive market?
Quality startups, trustworthy and transparent operations backed by advanced technology – it’s all essential. This is what sets POD apart from its competitors. Additionally, competitors serve as a validation of the market, confirming that we are in the right place at the right time.
