Who is Madhu Lunawat? The first Indian woman to launch a mutual fund business

The Wealth Company, part of the Pantomath Group, which received Sebi’s approval to launch an MF business, is the first fund house in India founded by a woman. The asset management company is led by Madhu Lunawat, who is also the Co-founder and Executive Director of the Pantomath Group.

Madhu is also the Co-Founder of Pantomath Group, a business spanning Investment Banking, M&A, Asset & Wealth Management, Institutional Equity, and Distribution.

Also Read | Madhu Lunawat makes history as first Indian woman to set up a mutual fund business


After completing her graduation from Guwahati University, Lunawat is a chartered accountant. Her journey includes pivotal roles at Infosys, ASREC, and Edelweiss, where she served as CFO of Edelweiss ARC before taking the entrepreneurial leap.

She started her career with Infosys in 2007 and then joined ASREC India. In Edelweiss Financial Services she started as Senior Manager and then worked as AVP till 2014. Post her stint with Edelweiss Financial Services, Lunawat joined Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Company which was for a short period of 2 months.

In 2014, she became the founder and director of Pantomath Capital Advisors and in April 2022 became managing director in The Wealth Company.

The Wealth Company Group also manages multiple category II AIFs schemes named India Inflection Opportunity Fund, Bharat Value Fund and Bharat Bhoomi Fund. She is also director at Asit C Mehta Financial Services.

Currently, there are approximately 46 existing fund houses in India, with a few having recently received approval to begin operations. Among them, only one fund house – Edelweiss Mutual Fund – is headed by a woman. Radhika Gupta serves as the Managing Director and CEO of Edelweiss Mutual Fund.

“This is not just a moment for me – it’s a moment for every woman who wants to build, lead, and reshape the financial landscape,” Lunawat told TOI. “We’re here to build something that’s intelligent, long-term, and deeply aligned with the real needs of Indian investors,” she said.

With this regulatory milestone, The Wealth Company formally enters the Rs 74.41 trillion mutual fund industry under its new identity – The Wealth Company Mutual Fund.

Sebi granted the Certificate of Registration to the company on July 18, enabling it to commence operations as a registered Asset Management Company (AMC). The Wealth Company Mutual Fund aims to bring a unique proposition to the market by combining rigorous, bottom-up, and data-intensive research methodologies—typically seen in private equity – with the simplicity and accessibility needed by retail investors, the release added.

The Wealth Company Mutual Fund, a Pantomath Group company, marked a bold beginning by becoming the first-ever new asset management company (AMC) to file four Scheme Information Documents (SIDs) on the very day of receiving its mutual fund license i.e. July 18.

Also Read | The Wealth Company Mutual Fund files 4 draft documents with Sebi

As India’s youngest AMC, The Wealth Company Mutual Fund seeks to democratize wealth creation for retail investors across the country. It has a strong focus on Tier-3 and beyond markets, which have been witnessing growing economic activity and rising surplus incomes. These, the company believes, deserve to be channeled into active fund management to participate in the country’s promising development journey as part of the Viksit Bharat agenda.

The AMC has appointed Prasanna Pathak as Deputy CEO, Aparna Shanker as CIO-Equity, Umesh Sharma as CIO- Debt, Debasish Mohanty as Chief Strategy Officer, and Bhalchandra Joshi as Chief Operating Officer, the release said.