GVK Scion Keshav Reddy’s Equal Ropes in Justice BN Srikrishna to Head Advisory Board Amid Data Protection Push
Equal, an innovative identity verification and data-sharing startup founded by GVK scion Keshav Reddy, has taken a significant step by setting up an advisory board. This board will be led by retired Supreme Court judge Justice BN Srikrishna, renowned for his pivotal role in architecting India’s data protection framework. The assembly of this board aligns with the growing emphasis on data security and privacy as the government introduces draft rules for the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act.
Justice Srikrishna, in his role as board chairman, aims to collaborate on crafting solutions that balance individual rights with economic growth and societal stability. He stated, “As chairman of the advisory board, I look forward to collaborating on solutions that balance individual rights and aspirations, economic growth, and stability of the society.”
The advisory board comprises esteemed members including former RBI deputy governors Jagdish Capoor, Rakesh Mohan, and Anand Sinha. Further adding to the board’s formidable lineup are former UIDAI chairman J Satyanarayana, former MeitY Secretary Ajay Prakash Sawhney, PH Ravikumar, the founding CEO of NCDEX, HR expert Anitha Ramachandran, and fintech expert and adviser Sunil Kulkarni.
The role of the advisory board is to guide Equal and its associated firm, OneMoney, in establishing secure and consent-driven data-sharing practices. This initiative is crucial for ensuring compliance with evolving regulatory norms and for promoting ethical data-sharing standards. Justice Srikrishna emphasized on the shared mission, “Their (Equal’s) commitment to enabling secure, compliant, and consent-driven data sharing aligns closely with my work in safeguarding privacy and fostering trust in technology-based democratisation of products and services.” The aim is to create frameworks that not only encourage innovation but also set global benchmarks for ethical data usage and business practices.
About Equal
Equal was co-founded in 2022 by Keshav Reddy in collaboration with former Swiggy engineering director Rajeev Ranjan. The startup simplifies processes like know-your-customer (KYC) requirements, fraud prevention, and regulatory compliance by integrating over 50 identity databases with access to more than 4,000 API providers. Equal’s growing client base includes prominent names like State Bank of India, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, as well as corporate giants such as Reliance Jio, Airtel, Uber, and Zoom.
In its strategic expansion, Equal made an undisclosed investment in August 2024 in OneMoney – an account aggregator platform. This allowed Equal to enhance its services by incorporating consent-based financial data-sharing solutions for financial institutions. Collectively, they boast facilitation of over 75 million monthly transactions and service to over 250 clients.
In a testament to its robust growth trajectory, Equal successfully raised a Series A funding round amounting to $10 million in November, pegged at a post-money valuation of $80 million. Notable contributions came from Prosus Ventures, Tomales Bay Capital, and Reddy himself, alongside investors like Blume Ventures, DST Global Partners, Gruhas, Valiant Capital, and Quona Capital. High-profile individual investors such as Binny Bansal, Karan Adani, Kunal Shah, Kunal Bahl, Nikhil Kamath, and Parth Jindal have also shown their support for the firm.
Positioned in a fiercely competitive market, Equal is carving its niche within India’s rapidly expanding identity verification and fraud detection industry. This sector has been witnessing a surge of new-age companies devising innovative solutions to aid banks, fintech firms, NBFCs, e-commerce platforms, gaming apps, and even matrimonial services in curbing and preventing fraud.
