TVS Capital Funds Chairman and Managing Director Gopal Srinivasan asserts that a strong brand identity significantly boosts a nation's growth, sparking aspirations, stability, and feelings of progress.
In an exclusive interview, Gopal Srinivasan, Chairman and Managing Director of TVS Capital Funds, shared his vision for the future of the investment firm. Srinivasan, who spent over two decades as an entrepreneur before founding TVS Capital in 2007, envisions the company becoming a global player in the next 20-30 years.
Srinivasan launched TVS Capital with a conviction that India was on the cusp of an entrepreneurial explosion. Over the years, the fund has grown from a 600 crore fund to its current 4,000+ crore Fund IV, with a deep focus on financial services and enterprise technology.
Srinivasan believes in investing with empathy, having been an entrepreneur himself. He prioritizes the quality of the entrepreneur over the entry valuation, emphasizing the importance of talent for a business to thrive for decades. Success, he says, isn't measured in singular spikes of achievement but in the ability to replicate outcomes consistently.
Recently, Srinivasan has made bets on companies like Saarathi in Mumbai and Finnable in Bengaluru. These start-ups were founded by professionals leaving established institutions to build from scratch, a strategy that Srinivasan finds appealing due to the disruptive technology, market potential, and strong management teams these companies possess.
Srinivasan has invested in several companies through TVS Capital Funds, including Ather Energy, ClearDekho, and Sigtuple. His philosophy on investing is rooted in endurance, with a focus on attraction and retention of great talent. He warns that companies risk being limited by the energy of their founders if they do not attract and retain great talent. A single individual can only take a company so far, he emphasizes.
Srinivasan's biggest investing lesson is belief in dreams. He thinks the next-gen entrepreneurs aren't necessarily from IIT/IIM but from large companies with the hunger to build enduring businesses. He also believes that a large share of this private capital should come from Indian savings.
TVS Capital Funds is an international franchise of Media, and Srinivasan thinks the future of Indian entrepreneurship lies beyond the traditional IIT/IIM circle. He emphasizes that success is not a one-time achievement but a consistent ability to replicate outcomes.
In conclusion, Srinivasan's vision for TVS Capital is one of empathy-driven investments and enduring entrepreneurship. He aims to attract and retain great talent, invest in disruptive technologies, and foster a culture of consistent success. As India continues to grow, Srinivasan believes that 3-5 times more private capital is needed to sustain this trajectory.
