We always strive to bring the finest stories from the world of entrepreneurship. This week we invited Smriti Tomar to share her interesting entrepreneurial journey with us. Smriti is a passionate entrepreneur, product engineer, fin-tech developer, blockchain enthusiast. She is the founder & CEO at “InvestoAsia” and is working with the team to build revolutionise the way investments are done into various assets classes. Let’s read more!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Smriti:
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey, please;
I am the founder and CEO of the company, InvestoAsia. I’m a B.tech graduate from NIT Bhopal, I have experience in data analytics field while working for Citibank Banamex, one of the largest commercial banks in Latin America to build risk strategies.
I’m also a blockchain developer and expert certified by IBM and The Hong Kong University, worked on Ethereum and R3 Corda to develop various applications, holds proclivity for project development and management at large. In the team, I take responsibility for R&D, product development and operations along with regulatory and legal activities.
I have also authored a patent on a system for the secure exchange of traded securities and method thereof.
I have been an avid investor since teenage. I believe in value investing, and am a follower of Warren Buffet’s principles. I realised that traditional methods are not scalable enough to provide financial inclusion and awareness, which led to the genesis of InvestoAsia.
Eventually, I made a team of experts and an advisory board of experts in various fields to realise this mission of financial inclusion in India that will revolutionize personal finance.
Why did you choose entrepreneurship over a job?
I have been on the other side of the road as well. I had worked as an employee with a global giant in banking for almost a year. And I wasn’t satisfied the whole time, as if I could not utilize my skills and talent to the fullest. And not just personal satisfaction, I could see so many problems in the status quo concerning financial awareness, inclusion and democratization, and yet I felt helpless. I knew that I could never contribute to society by simply doing a job.
Apart from this, entrepreneurship is my natural calling, it gives me the freedom to dream and to realise it too. It has its struggles and hardships, but the kind of excitement and dynamism it brings is itself a reward in the journey of a startup. I hope I keep learning and growing each day and eventually be able to pay back to society.
How do you find the industry/niche that you’re in?
Coming a few years in the wealth management industry would be nothing less than an apotheosis, considering the economic growth and the middle-class population in India. Stock market investing penetration in India is very low (total accounts ~2%) compared to China (14%) & USA (20%) and it is increasing at CAGR of 22%. Financial activity will increase to 40% as against 21% now, because of expanding millennial/ middle class, financial literacy, robust and growing Indian economy, pro-active government & regulators, rising trust & adoption in digital financial services. The Inflection Point in India is now. India’s GDP per capita (PPP) will increase from Intl$ 6,600 today to Intl$ 15,527 in 2026. A similar pattern in China, when their GDP per capita increased from Intl$ 5,060 (2005) to Intl$ 15,423 (2016). Further Digitisation (Digital India) will increase adoption in online financial services. And this is where our platform will help serve the needs.
What gets you out of bed in the morning i.e. what’s your source of motivation?
Well, being in a startup, life gets so dynamic that no day in your life is similar. Each day comes with new opportunities and tasks. Hence, it’s mostly the excitement, the thrill, the nervousness to do something new that gets me up in the morning. Also quite hilariously, there are some nights when I get some ideas in my dreams and that excites me and gets me out of the bed in the morning!
What challenges/obstacles did you face in your journey so far?
Lack of financial literacy and awareness, I believe is the biggest challenge for us, all the more in India where the financially literate population is merely 20%. Even fewer are active investors in the stock market, barely 3 % of the population. Hence, this has been the biggest problem for us. To solve this, we are launching our financial awareness program, that helps people understand how to create and manage wealth in terms of saving and investing. We have some great financial experts who help to create content through videos, blogs and community discussions.
What comes first for you – money or emotions?
Well, it’s not money! At the same time, I’m also not an emotional person. I rather strive towards a perfect balance between IQ and EQ i.e, Intelligence Quotient and Emotional Quotient.
How do you handle the pressure and manage stress?
I’m grateful to have some of the greatest mentors an entrepreneur could have. They guide me in everyday operations and help me handle extreme situations calmly. Apart from this, I tend to read a lot about some of the entrepreneurs I look up to. Their resilience and strength give me the motivation to keep moving.
What is one strategy that you believe has helped you grow as a person?
To not stop experimenting. Entrepreneurship in itself is a long term experiment. I believe it takes a lot of courage to be able to think different, think crazy and then to experiment over the same. And no matter what’s the outcome, the journey in itself leads to and learning and an exponential self-growth
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
I believe that it’s not a problem to start from zero. The key to success is to not stay at either zero or one! I wasn’t into finance or technology right from the beginning, and today I run a venture based on fin-tech. Success is a relative thing, but as long as you are developing yourself, you are more successful than yesterday.
What advice would you give to someone starting particularly women?
Well, I always urge women to dare to dream. We usually tend to restrict ourselves to the set norms and expectations. I want more and more women to break these shackles and dream big! Apart from this, I would suggest growing beyond this circle of revenues, profits, valuation and investments, stay focused on the value that your product gives to the user/ the society.
BrilliantRead is committed to bringing stories from the startup ecosystem, Stories that reshape our perspective, add value to our community and be a constant source of motivation not just for our community but also for the whole ecosystem of entrepreneurs and aspiring individuals.
Note: If you have a similar story to share with our audience and would like to be featured on our online magazine, then please write to us at [email protected], we will review your story and extend an invitation to feature if it is worth publishing.
