Prateek Mehta Joins as Partner for SPC India

We are thrilled to announce that Prateek Mehta has joined SPC as a Partner to lead SPC India, our first community location outside the US. Expanding to Bangalore is an exciting opportunity and a unique challenge, and I am excited to have Prateek lead this critical initiative for SPC.

Prateek’s journey is emblematic of the Bangalore builder culture, with over 15 years spent in the Indian startup ecosystem as a founder and operator at different stages across multiple companies. He co-founded Scripbox and Upwardly, scaled Myntra and was key in expanding Angel One’s market cap. His experience is rich and diverse—all the right ingredients to foster a uniquely valuable environment for members of SPC India. Ruchi, Binny and I are grateful to have an experienced leader like Prateek help us bring the -1 to 0 philosophy to India.

We asked Prateek to share a bit of his own thinking on India, startups, and how he hopes to impact the Bangalore tech ecosystem at SPC.

Tell us about how you see the current startup/builder ecosystem in India.

Prateek: The startup ecosystem is just beginning to explode. There is a new wave of talent that will drive a rapid expansion in the number and quality of startups. We will see hundreds of employees coming out from the previous generation of successful startups, strong tech and product shops, and research and academic institutions. These individuals have seen what’s possible and have the ambition and grit to solve big problems in the Indian and global market. There are also now many second and third time founders and early operators looking to build again, where previously this pool was much smaller. What we need in the Indian context is a platform that provides them intellectual and emotional safety to navigate through the messy journey of -1 to 0.

Can you tell us about one of your own -1 to 0 experiences?

Prateek: Prior to building Scripbox, I had seen mis-selling of investment products in the Indian ecosystem for years, and was bewildered at the lack of simple products that enabled wealth creation. So I had an idea to create a product that just simplified how information is presented, consumed, and how investment decisions are made. Over a period of time, we became a fully integrated wealth management platform. I still think at some level we were a little early for the Indian market, which made the 0 to 1 phase really hard for us. One of the things I needed at that time — and what we want to do at SPC — is help potential founders answer the three most important questions — Why this? Why now? and Why me?

What do you look for when evaluating a potential SPC member?

Prateek: I like candidates who can be very imaginative about how the future will evolve. Tech in India is changing at an unprecedented pace and so great companies will often come more from anticipating future trends instead of replacing current solutions. In that sense, it’s essential to get a strong Founder x Future fit. The founders who are willing to dive off the deep end and explore some of these offbeat ideas have a good shot at creating an enduring company. Another attribute I notice is strong opinions that are loosely held. In -1 to 0 you need to develop opinions on areas that are new to you so you can direct your learning process, but you also must be open to changing them as you learn.

What sorts of companies are you most interested in seeing more of?

Prateek: I’m personally most excited by companies using AI in enterprise for productivity and efficiency across the chain of business or personal lives. I would also like to see more deep tech ideas, whether in synthetic biology, space tech or robotics. And I have to mention fintech. India is a country where financial services are still deeply under-penetrated and as the per capita income goes up, we’ll see an explosion in demand for financial services. Fintech is an important part of the India story for me. But truthfully there is so much opportunity in the Indian economy and potential to serve global markets that it is difficult to narrow down on company ideas! So I will simplify with — I want to see ambitious companies.

How can SPC India members can make the most of their time in the community?

Prateek: It all starts with really keeping an open mind. SPC is all about -1 to 0, all about discovering something new and setting aside good ideas because you want to find a great one. It takes a high level of open-mindedness to embrace all of this at the same time you are trying to find your place in the market and ecosystem. I also think members who are excited to share what they know as much as learn from others will get the most from their time here. We try to create the feeling of an early-stage team when you have no team yet.