ET Startup Awards 2026 | Startup of the Year: Street-smart Groww outruns regulatory odds to claim top prize

Online investment and wealthtech platform Groww bagged the coveted Startup of the Year award at the ET Startup Awards 2026 for what the jury lauded for its execution in a competitive, tightly regulated business, profitability, successful public listing and the ability to retain its startup DNA at scale.

The decision followed an extensive debate over six nominees, ecommerce marketplace Meesho, logistics firm Porter, spacetech startup Skyroot Aerospace, urban mobility major Rapido and sovereign AI foundational model Sarvam.

With the win, Groww joins the likes of Urban Company, Lenskart, OfBusiness, Razorpay, Zomato, Zerodha, Delhivery, Swiggy, Oyo, Freshworks and Ola, all of which won the biggest honour over the 11-year history of the awards.


“They have outexecuted everybody in this space,” juror Sachin Bansal, founder of fintech unicorn Navi, said. “It is a tough space from a regulatory perspective and from a competition perspective. They have listed as well and retained the startup DNA at the same time.” Bansal said Groww, Meesho, Porter and Skyroot were the strongest contenders and any of them could have won.

“The Startup of the Year category, in particular, was hotly contested and deeply debated,” said Aryaman Birla, director, Aditya Birla Group. “Everyone had a different perspective, but all of them were very valid.”

Also Read: ET Startup Awards 2026: Groww adjudged No. 1; Sauce VC’s Manu Chandra named Midas Touch winner

“When we started Groww, the hard problem was not building another investing app; it was removing the fear and complexity that kept many Indians away. A decade later, access is only the first layer. Helping people make better decisions as their wealth and needs evolve is the larger task ahead. We thank the jury for recognising that journey,” Lalit Keshre, cofounder and chief executive of Groww, told ET on winning the award.

Founded in 2016 by former Flipkart executives Keshre, Harsh Jain, Neeraj Singh and Ishan Bansal, the Bengaluru-based company began as a direct-mutual-fund platform. It entered stockbroking in 2020 and overtook Zerodha three years later to become India’s largest broker by active clients. As of July 2026, Groww has over 13.1 million active clients.

Groww now offers stocks, mutual funds, bonds, derivatives, margin financing and wealth-management services.

In November 2025, Groww’s parent Billionbrains Garage Ventures raised Rs 6,632 crore through its initial public offering. The shares listed at up to a 14% premium and have more-than-doubled, since. The company is now valued at over Rs 1.2 lakh crore, making Groww India’s most-valued fintech company.

In FY26, revenue from operations rose 20% to Rs 4,644 crore, and net profit increased 14% to Rs 2,083 crore. It ended March with 21.6 million transacting users and Rs 3 lakh crore in customer assets. In the June quarter, revenue climbed 66% year-on-year to Rs 1,501 crore, while net profit rose 94% to Rs 735 crore, up 7% sequentially.

Jury chair Rishad Premji said the discussions showed how significantly Indian startups had matured — their ability to think long term, attract patient capital and address large problems. Established companies, he said, could learn from their agility and willingness to take risks and pivot.

Groww is now moving beyond transaction-led broking. It acquired wealth-management platform Fisdom for Rs 961 crore, launched W for affluent customers, and MF Prime, and is scaling bonds and loans against securities.

At its first annual general meeting after listing, Keshre identified technology, wealth management and artificial intelligence as immediate priorities, using AI to personalise the app and improve customer service.

Jury member Mukesh Bansal recused himself from voting in the category as he was an early investor in Groww and Skyroot.

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Other contenders

Porter

Porter provides on-demand logistics services to small and medium enterprises for shorter distances, working with larger trucks along with smaller carriage vehicles for last mile delivery. It also operates as a marketplace connecting individual customers and small businesses to fleet operators.

Skyroot Aerospace

India’s first spacetech unicorn, Skyroot Aerospace is building rockets to provide dedicated, on-demand access to orbit for small satellite operators. Its Vikram-1 vehicle is India’s first privately developed rocket to successfully reach LEO inJuly 2026. The company is also developing the larger Vikram-2 for heavier satellites and working on a reusable rocket.

Rapido

India’s largest ride-hailing platform, Rapido offers two-, three-, and four-wheeler taxis across 400 cities. It recently launched the food delivery app Ownly in Bengaluru, targeting value-conscious customers, and plans to expand the service to other cities soon.

Meesho

Meesho is an ecommerce marketplace that specialises in selling low-priced products. The firm sells apparel, accessories, home and kitchen goods, and electronics. Known for selling unbranded products, it has also started Meesho Mall for branded goods, and is well entrenched in non-metro markets. It listed in December 2025 and is currently valued at more than $9 billion.