Ajay is one the early pioneers of the Indian venture industry. He has worked with startups for more than 20 years. He was acknowledged as being among ‘The 40 Who Matter in the Indian Start-up Ecosystem’ and among ‘Top 100 Leaders shaping finance across Asia’ by LiveMint and FintechAsia respectively.
Ajay developed India’s first Venture Debt program in 2005 when he created a path-breaking lending group within Citibank to lead the first of several debt deals ever done for startups in the country. He leveraged that experience to launch InnoVen Capital, formerly known as SVB India Finance, the country’s first specialty venture debt business in 2007. Following a buyout of the business in 2015, Ajay led the Group’s expansion into Singapore and China. Ajay left InnoVen in 2017 to start Alteria Capital along with co-founder Vinod Murali where he currently serves as Managing Partner.
Ajay is a passionate advocate for preserving Mumbai’s heritage. In addition to leading history walks over weekends, he also serves on the Managing Committee of the Maritime Mumbai Museum Society which is lobbying to establish a modern and immersive museum on Mumbai’s extensive maritime history. Ajay holds an MBA from State University of New York in Buffalo and a Masters in Banking & Finance from Mumbai University.