Investment App Groww Backed by Microsoft CEO

Indian investment app Groww announced this weekend that the head of one of the world’s biggest tech companies is in its corner.

Groww CEO Lalit Keshre tweeted that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella would be investing in the firm and providing guidance.

“Groww gets one of the world’s best CEOs as an investor and advisor,” Keshre wrote. “Thrilled to have @satyanadella join us in our mission to make financial services accessible in India.”

Founded in 2016, Groww lets users invest in mutual funds. Last year saw the company raise more than $300 million in two separate funding rounds, bringing its valuation to $3 billion. In 2019, the company raised $21.4 million in a Series B round led by the VC firm Ribbit Capital.

Read more: India Sees Highest IPO Funding In 13 Years

Last year saw a huge wave of funding for startups in India. In the first three months of the year alone, these companies generated more than $2 billion through initial public offerings (IPOs) the highest level of IPO fundraising in the nation since 2008.

That funding was driven by massive amounts of foreign money coupled with newfound interest from mom-and-pop investors.

It’s these type of investors Groww sets out to attract.

“Easy. Fast. Transparent,” the company says on its website. “Investing in India was none of these things. But we’re changing that.”

The company says it has more than 20 million members, and is backed by investors that include Sequoia, Ribbit and Tiger Capital.

Read more: Investment App Groww Lands $21.4M To Expand India Market Share

Based in Bangalore, Groww focuses on investment products and services for millennials, offering investment planning and equity-linked savings accounts.

Keshre has also spoken in interviews of expanding into other offerings: “We will look at adding government bonds and other fixed-income products. We are also launching derivatives. Plus, there is a lot more to build for our mutual funds vertical itself.”