Wealth Management Veteran Chirag Gandhi
Wealth-management industry veteran Chirag Gandhi, who helped scale Dezerv’s assets more than tenfold in less than three years, is preparing to launch a new wealth-tech venture targeting India’s richest families, with the venture set to raise up to $10 million, according to people familiar with the development.
Gandhi is building the business with a co-founder whose identity has not yet been disclosed. The venture has attracted backing from strategic investors and family offices, with the fundraise expected to be announced in the coming weeks, the people said.
The new platform is being positioned at the intersection of technology and sophisticated wealth management, with an ambition to build a new-age platform for ultra-high-net-worth individuals, entrepreneurs and family offices.
“This is being built with a very different ambition from a traditional wealth-management business,” said one person familiar with the venture. “The idea is to bring technology, institutional expertise and a much more integrated approach to managing complex wealth.”
Gandhi brings more than two decades of experience in the wealth-management industry, with much of his career focused on UHNI and entrepreneurial wealth.
He was part of the founding team of IIFL Wealth, established in 2008, and spent around 13 years with the business, eventually becoming a senior partner. He subsequently served as Managing Director at Julius Baer before joining Dezerv in its early stages.
At Dezerv, Gandhi was instrumental in building and scaling the business, with assets growing from approximately Rs 1,000 crore to around Rs 15,000 crore in less than three years, according to people familiar with the business.
His move marks his return to the entrepreneurial side of wealth management, this time with a technology-led model aimed squarely at India’s rapidly expanding pool of UHNI wealth.
India’s wealth-management landscape has become increasingly competitive, with private banks, wealth managers, family offices and newer technology-led platforms seeking to build deeper relationships with first-generation entrepreneurs and established business families.
The new venture is expected to use the capital primarily to build its technology platform, product capabilities and senior leadership team as it scales its presence across key wealth markets in India.
The final fundraise, along with the names of the investors and Gandhi’s co-founder, is expected to be disclosed as part of the formal announcement.
For Gandhi, the venture represents his third major entrepreneurial chapter in the financial-services ecosystem—and potentially a significant new bet on how India’s wealthiest families will manage and think about their wealth in the next decade.
