Twenty-three-year-old Anjali Sardana is the founder of the instant home-help startup Pronto, which is now valued at around $100 million. The idea originated from research into the difficulty of finding reliable domestic help on demand, though Sardana recently clarified online that her uncle, not her father, is the founder of Innova Solutions.
Flipkart has completed its corporate shift from Singapore to India, a key step in preparing for a domestic IPO. This required government approval due to a Chinese investor, and the move follows recent layoffs and the return of a key executive to oversee IPO-related strategy.
Wipro Enterprises is exploring an early-stage entry into the semiconductor sector, specifically in chip assembly and testing. This aligns with a broader trend of Indian conglomerates entering the chip manufacturing space, which the government is actively monitoring for supply chain issues.
Main topics: Anjali Sardana and Pronto; Flipkart's corporate restructuring and IPO preparations; Wipro's potential semiconductor foray; Government monitoring of chip supplies.
Business News›Tech›Newsletters›Morning Dispatch›Inside Anjali Sardana's Pronto journey; Flipkart’s IPO prep
Inside Anjali Sardana's Pronto journey; Flipkart’s IPO prep
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Happy Tuesday! Pronto's founder Anjali Sardana is slugging it out in the competitive instant house-help segment. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch.
Also in the letter:
■ Wipro's chip foray
■ Govt tracking chip supplies
■ Navi's Q3 FY26 financials
Twenty-three-year-old Anjali Sardana, founder of Bengaluru-based instant home-help startup Pronto, has quietly emerged as one of the youngest entrepreneurs in India's on-demand services space. The company is now valued at around $100 million.
Tell me more: Sardana traces the idea for Pronto to research she conducted into labour markets during her college years.
One finding stood out. Despite the vast size of the domestic services workforce, households still struggled to find reliable help on demand. That gap eventually became the basis for Pronto's business model.
Social media claims: Sardana has also faced scrutiny online in recent days.
Some users assumed she was the daughter of Raj Sardana, the Indian-American founder of the US-based IT services firm Innova Solutions, suggesting that family backing helped her raise funding at a young age.
She clarified to ET that Raj Sardana is her uncle, not her father.
What stands out:
Also Read: Househelp apps top 2 million monthly orders amid profitability questions
Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO, Flipkart
Flipkart has completed its reverse flip, shifting its corporate domicile from Singapore to India as it prepares for a domestic public listing, sources told us.
What's happening?
The move follows approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in December. The company was also awaiting clearance from the central government under Press Note 3 regulations.
Jargon buster: Press Note 3, introduced in 2020, requires government approval for investments from countries sharing a land border with India.
Since Tencent, a Chinese internet major, holds about 5-6% of Flipkart, the government's nod was required before the Singapore-based parent entity could merge with the Indian entity.
Tell me more: Under the new structure, Singapore-based entities (including Flipkart's parent) will merge into Flipkart Internet Private Limited.
The move comes as Flipkart streamlines operations ahead of the public market debut. ET was the first to report on March 7 that the company had asked 400-500 employees to exit following performance reviews, affecting teams across operations, engineering, and marketing.
Also Read: IPO-bound Flipkart explores food delivery launch
Flipkart has brought back Nishant Verman as senior vice president (SVP), people familiar with the development said.
In his new role, Verman will oversee corporate development, investor relations, and capital markets strategy tied to the IPO.
Before launching his own venture, Bzaar, in 2020, Verman worked in Flipkart's corporate development team and played a key role in the company's $16 billion sale to Walmart in 2018.
Wipro Enterprises is evaluating a potential entry into the semiconductor sector, sources told us, joining a growing list of Indian conglomerates looking to participate in the country's chip manufacturing push.
Driving the news: The group is exploring opportunities in chip assembly and testing, betting on the sector as a new growth avenue.
"The talks are at an early and exploratory stage, but the company is keen to diversify into this sector," a person aware of the developments told us. "The company is first looking to scout for a credible technology partner, as that will be a critical and deciding factor."
Details:
What peers are doing:
Govt tracking chip supply snags as units come alive: The Centre is closely monitoring global supply constraints at a time when it expects the import of integrated circuits (ICs) or semiconductor chips to sharply expand throughout FY27 as semiconductor assembly, testing, marking and packaging (ATMP) units under the India semiconductor mission (ISM) begin production this year, officials told us.
Navi Finserv posts 14% rise in Q3 revenue: Consumer lending startup Navi Finserv, founded by Flipkart cofounder Sachin Bansal, reported operating revenues of Rs 654 crore for the quarter ended December 31 FY26, up 14% from the same period last year. The Bengaluru-based firm posted a net profit of Rs 75.5 crore in the quarter, a 21.7% YoY increase.
■ Can AI kill the venture capitalist? (Wired)
■ China leads the humanoid robot race — but the US still has a shot (Rest of World)
■ Why did we ever think data centres in the Gulf were a good idea? (FT)
Also in the letter:
■ Wipro's chip foray
■ Govt tracking chip supplies
■ Navi's Q3 FY26 financials
ETtech Profile | Anjali Sardana: the 23-year-old Pronto founder behind a $100 million house-help startup
Twenty-three-year-old Anjali Sardana, founder of Bengaluru-based instant home-help startup Pronto, has quietly emerged as one of the youngest entrepreneurs in India's on-demand services space. The company is now valued at around $100 million.
Tell me more: Sardana traces the idea for Pronto to research she conducted into labour markets during her college years.
One finding stood out. Despite the vast size of the domestic services workforce, households still struggled to find reliable help on demand. That gap eventually became the basis for Pronto's business model.
Social media claims: Sardana has also faced scrutiny online in recent days.
Some users assumed she was the daughter of Raj Sardana, the Indian-American founder of the US-based IT services firm Innova Solutions, suggesting that family backing helped her raise funding at a young age.
She clarified to ET that Raj Sardana is her uncle, not her father.
What stands out:
- Sardana is building the company as a solo founder in an execution-heavy category.
- Industry observers say the key challenge will be balancing supply chain availability with consistent service quality.
- Board members and investors believe she has a strong founder-market fit for the emerging segment.
Also Read: Househelp apps top 2 million monthly orders amid profitability questions
IPO-bound Flipkart completes reverse flip; shifts domicile from Singapore to India
Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO, Flipkart
Flipkart has completed its reverse flip, shifting its corporate domicile from Singapore to India as it prepares for a domestic public listing, sources told us.
What's happening?
- The restructuring clears a key hurdle for Walmart-owned ecommerce giant to pursue an IPO in India.
- Flipkart has begun engaging with merchant bankers and aims to file its draft prospectus later this year.
The move follows approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in December. The company was also awaiting clearance from the central government under Press Note 3 regulations.
Jargon buster: Press Note 3, introduced in 2020, requires government approval for investments from countries sharing a land border with India.
Since Tencent, a Chinese internet major, holds about 5-6% of Flipkart, the government's nod was required before the Singapore-based parent entity could merge with the Indian entity.
Tell me more: Under the new structure, Singapore-based entities (including Flipkart's parent) will merge into Flipkart Internet Private Limited.
The move comes as Flipkart streamlines operations ahead of the public market debut. ET was the first to report on March 7 that the company had asked 400-500 employees to exit following performance reviews, affecting teams across operations, engineering, and marketing.
Also Read: IPO-bound Flipkart explores food delivery launch
Flipkart brings back Nishant Verman to aid IPO push
Flipkart has brought back Nishant Verman as senior vice president (SVP), people familiar with the development said.
In his new role, Verman will oversee corporate development, investor relations, and capital markets strategy tied to the IPO.
Before launching his own venture, Bzaar, in 2020, Verman worked in Flipkart's corporate development team and played a key role in the company's $16 billion sale to Walmart in 2018.
Wipro Enterprises eyes entry into semiconductor sector
Wipro Enterprises is evaluating a potential entry into the semiconductor sector, sources told us, joining a growing list of Indian conglomerates looking to participate in the country's chip manufacturing push.
Driving the news: The group is exploring opportunities in chip assembly and testing, betting on the sector as a new growth avenue.
"The talks are at an early and exploratory stage, but the company is keen to diversify into this sector," a person aware of the developments told us. "The company is first looking to scout for a credible technology partner, as that will be a critical and deciding factor."
Details:
- Wipro is considering entry through the outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) route.
- The company's plans may also depend on how the Indian Semiconductor Mission 2.0 evolves in its next phase.
What peers are doing:
- The HCL Group has begun work on a Rs 3,700 crore OSAT facility in Uttar Pradesh.
- The Tata Group is building an OSAT facility worth Rs 27,000 crore in Assam.
- The Murugappa Group's CG Semi has inaugurated the first unit of a Rs 7,600 crore project in Gujarat's Sanand.
Other Top Stories By Our Reporters
Govt tracking chip supply snags as units come alive: The Centre is closely monitoring global supply constraints at a time when it expects the import of integrated circuits (ICs) or semiconductor chips to sharply expand throughout FY27 as semiconductor assembly, testing, marking and packaging (ATMP) units under the India semiconductor mission (ISM) begin production this year, officials told us.
Navi Finserv posts 14% rise in Q3 revenue: Consumer lending startup Navi Finserv, founded by Flipkart cofounder Sachin Bansal, reported operating revenues of Rs 654 crore for the quarter ended December 31 FY26, up 14% from the same period last year. The Bengaluru-based firm posted a net profit of Rs 75.5 crore in the quarter, a 21.7% YoY increase.
Global Picks We Are Reading
■ Can AI kill the venture capitalist? (Wired)
■ China leads the humanoid robot race — but the US still has a shot (Rest of World)
■ Why did we ever think data centres in the Gulf were a good idea? (FT)
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