Latest news with #Pokharna
Economic Times
10-07-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Dollar's slide may help IT add 70–300 basis points to Q1 revenues
ETtech Currency is set to overshadow volumes as growth drivers in the June-quarter toplines at Indian tech powerhouses, with a falling dollar giving the anticipated tepid sales some much-needed ballast amid an evident revenue slack in the industry's traditional money spinners either side of the Atlantic.A retreat for the dollar, which gives the rupee a tailwind, should boost Indian tech revenues by 70-300 basis points in the June quarter, analysts said. One basis point is a hundredth of a percentage point. The currency impact cited above, therefore, should expand revenues by 0.7 to 3 percentage the April-June quarter, most major currencies have appreciated on average versus the US Dollar (USD). For instance, the Indian Rupee (INR) appreciated 1%, the Pound Sterling (GBP) 6.2%, the Euro (EUR) 8%, the Australian Dollar (AUD) 2.6% and the Japanese Yen (JPY) grew 5.5%. A weak dollar against a basket of currencies will lead to 100-200 bps of on-quarter cross-currency tailwinds, Motilal Oswal said in a report. HSBC Global Research estimates the impact to range between 80-450 basis points. These movements are higher for companies with greater exposure to EUR, GBP and JPY such as Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), HCL Technologies, Coforge, KPIT, data from Kotak Institutional Equities showed. Currency movements are crucial because Indian IT firms earn a large share of their revenues in foreign currencies but spend in INR -- most of it on employee wages in India. Typically, a stronger dollar helps gain more revenues as most IT majors' over 40-50% revenue comes from the US. However, when the dollar weakens against other currencies such as GBP, EUR, or JPY, revenues earned in those regions helps boost the reported toplines in instance, India's largest software service provider, TCS, has the least dollar dependency among tier-1 companies and derives 50% of its revenues from non-USD currencies. It is expected to net a 211 basis points revenue upside in the second quarter of the ongoing fiscal. The maximum positive impact could be recorded by mid-sized firm KPIT at 299 basis points because it derives a substantial 72% of its revenues from non-USD markets, data by Kotak Institutional Equities showed."During the quarter, the Indian rupee has appreciated around 1% against the dollar which typically is not beneficial for exporters,' said Sumit Pokharna, IT analyst with Kotak Securities. 'However, the rupee has depreciated against other currencies in the 2.5-8% range. This is providing tailwinds for software services exporters on the US$ revenue growth from the previous quarter.'He added that tighter controls by companies on travel costs and hikes and some pulling back on compensation, will aid margins stability for large IT companies while expansion for select mid IT at a time when discretionary spending remains muted, and deal closure timelines are elongated, the exposure to other currencies is helping IT firms, Pokharna the flip side, companies like Persistent Systems and Mphasis, which have among the highest exposure to the US at 85% and 82%, respectively, the sequential benefit of the currency movement will be contained at 69 basis points and 75 basis points, respectively. Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. Markets need to see more than profits from Oyo Can Grasim's anti-competition charge against Asian Paints stand amid intense war Engine fuel switches or something else? One month on, still no word on what crashed AI 171 Delhivery survived the Meesho curveball. Can it keep on delivering profits? Stock Radar: Page Industries breaks out from Cup & Handle formation; stock hits fresh 52-week high For risk-takers with ability to stay invested for the long term: 5 small-caps from different sectors with upside potential of 5 to 32% Multibagger or IBC - Part 14: This auto ancillary with double-digit net margins is now getting EV-focused These mid-cap stocks with 'Strong Buy' & 'Buy' recos can rally over 25%, according to analysts
Time of India
07-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
'That is business suicide': IIT Kanpur graduate shares lessons from his failed investment that once looked promising
What happens when a well-funded startup, backed by top VCs and built around a high-impact mission, still fails to survive? Harsh Pokharna , an IITian and CEO, recently took to Instagram to share the harsh lessons he learned after a health-tech startup he invested in shut down. His brutally honest post has since gone viral, not just for its candour, but for the clarity it offers to anyone trying to crack India's notoriously complex healthcare market. He revealed that he invested in the health-tech start-up in 2020. The startup aimed to be an aggregator for cancer hospitals, giving patients a platform where they could browse treatment options, consult doctors online, and choose where to receive care. With over $7 million raised from investors and a strong organic reach of 25,000+ monthly visitors and over 1,000 unique cancer patient leads, the start-up had all the signs of a high-potential venture. But even with these numbers, it couldn't survive. 'We really thought hospitals would see the value in owning or partnering with a brand like this,' Pokharna wrote. 'But it didn't work out that way.' Critical lessons he learned According to Pokharna, the failure wasn't due to a lack of vision or execution—it was rooted in the structural reality of Indian healthcare. In his post, he listed three critical lessons that founders (and investors) should take seriously: - Hospitals hold all the power According to Harsh, aggregator platforms may look good on paper, but in reality, they're completely at the mercy of hospitals. Payments get delayed, contracts are disregarded, and any profit margin gets wiped out by compliance and collection costs. Hospitals simply don't need middlemen. Digital-only doesn't work (yet) The Indian market isn't ready to pay for purely online healthcare services, claims Harsh. Digital tools are useful for generating leads, but they can't sustain a business. Offline is necessary—and expensive Indian patients still prefer in-person consultations and physical centres. But building offline infrastructure is a heavy lift. According to Pokharna, each centre takes 12–24 months to break even and requires massive upfront investment. If a startup can't afford to scale offline, it stalls. His biggest takeaway? For Pokharna, the biggest takeaway is simple but sobering: startups trying to be aggregators in healthcare are walking a dangerous line. Without strong differentiators or leverage, they risk becoming powerless middlemen—with no margins, no sustainability, and no way out. He cautioned that building an aggregator-only business in Indian healthcare is a risky move. Without solid solutions to the structural challenges of the sector, founders risk setting themselves up for failure from the very start. In Pokharna's own words, it may look like a promising pitch deck, but if you're not careful, it could be business suicide.
Time of India
03-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Cancer care startup Onco pulls down shutters as unit economics bite
Academy Empower your mind, elevate your skills Bengaluru-based cancer care Onco has shut its operations, according to Harsh Pokharna, cofounder and chief executive of fintech firm OkCredit, who had invested in Onco in provided online consultancy for cancer patients by being an aggregator platform for hospitals. It also allowed patients to book cancer treatment packages , talk to other patients and get medicines Amit Jotwani, an oncologist, and IIT Kanpur alumnus Rashie Jain founded Onco in 2016. It later got acquired by Apollo Hospitals Group, according to the LinkedIn profiles of the platform had raised over $7 million from top investors, including Accel and Chiratae Ventures, among others, according to Pokharna's LinkedIn post.'They (Onco) also built a strong brand. At their peak, they had 25,000+ visitors and over 1,000 unique leads (cancer patients) every month—all organic, across their website, app, and social channels,' Pokharna said in his post, adding that they thought hospitals would see value in partnering with it. However, it didn't turn out to be so. He further explained the issues that Onco faced in scaling, despite being backed by venture capital firms and investors.'Hospitals in India hold all the power. They don't really need you. Your margins get eaten alive by collections and compliance costs,' he he mentioned that customers don't pay enough for online-only services, and while offline presence is necessary, it is capital-intensive.'Digital is great for leads, but it can't be your whole business. Unit economics just don't work with digital-only solutions because of low ARPU (average revenue per user),' he said. 'Building those offline centres isn't cheap. Each one takes at least 12–24 months to break even.'This development comes at a time when many healthtech startups have entered the segment. Some notable ones include e-pharmacy company PharmEasy, consultation platform Practo, and medicine delivery platform Netmeds, among Jr founder Karan Bajaj's new healthtech startup Complement 1, which focuses on cancer care solutions, raised $16 million in a seed funding round led by global venture capital fund Owl Ventures and early-stage investor Blume Ventures last players are also entering the space. For instance, Tata Digital has entered the e-pharmacy industry through 1mg, which operates through an omnichannel model. Apollo Hospitals also has a similar offering through Apollo Pharmacy.E-commerce giant Amazon is the latest to join the race by expanding its healthcare ambitions, entering the at-home diagnostics market, as it looks to position itself as a comprehensive medical services platform beyond online pharmacy and new startups like instant medicine delivery firm Plazza and instant diagnostics service provider Zet Health in Bengaluru are also trying to disrupt the segment by tapping into the demand for rapid commerce.
Economic Times
22-06-2025
- Health
- Economic Times
Harvard doctor's simple tip can boost your happiness in one minute. A startup CEO is already practicing it
iStock Harvard doctor Trisha Pasricha proved that one-minute chats with strangers can boost happiness, echoing a University of Chicago study. In a parallel tale, startup CEO Harsh Pokharna found the same truth during spontaneous meetups in Jaipur, reinforcing that real connection starts offline. (Representational image: iStock) It wasn't a research lab or a stethoscope that Harvard doctor Trisha Pasricha turned to recently—it was the simple, brave act of chatting with strangers while waiting in line. A physician, an instructor at Harvard Medical School, and the Ask a Doctor columnist for The Washington Post, Dr. Pasricha tested a charming scientific theory on the bustling platforms of Boston's Green Line: that one-minute conversations with strangers can actually make you happier. 'It is scientifically proven that you can boost your happiness in one minute by talking to a stranger,' she began in a video she shared on Instagram, proceeding to engage unsuspecting commuters in playful and warm exchanges. Whether she was joking about being a Celtics fan or asking if someone wanted to be a pediatrician, the result was almost always the same—people smiled, talked, and lingered in conversations they hadn't planned for. The experiment wasn't just a cute social video. It was rooted in evidence. According to Dr. Pasricha, several studies, including one from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business in 2014, showed that people who spoke to strangers during their daily commute felt more positive afterward—even though they originally assumed their fellow travelers wouldn't be interested. 'I had a great time,' Dr. Pasricha said, visibly moved by the simplicity of connection. 'Most people were down to just keep talking for minutes and minutes on end.' Interestingly, this scientific truth found a surprising echo in the world of tech entrepreneurship. Harsh Pokharna, the CEO of Bengaluru-based fintech startup OkCredit and an IIT Kanpur alumnus, unintentionally embarked on a social experiment of his own. During a break in his hometown Jaipur, Pokharna posted a casual Instagram story inviting people to hang out. What began as boredom soon turned into an unexpectedly fulfilling journey of human connection. From random DMs to heartfelt discussions about therapy, dating, and dreams, Pokharna's days became filled with spontaneous meetups that mirrored the spirit of Pasricha's scientific adventure. 'There were no rules, no agendas—just organic human connection,' Pokharna noted, as he sipped coffee, played badminton, and took walks with strangers who soon felt like old friends. Both Pasricha and Pokharna's experiences—one rooted in medical science, the other in lived curiosity—prove the same point: in an era dominated by curated lives and digital walls, the art of spontaneous conversation is a quiet rebellion. It's free, it's freeing, and it might just be the one-minute happiness hack we all need. Pasricha's dare at the end of her video is more than an Instagram caption—'I dare you to try this with a stranger today'—it's an invitation to revive something ancient and humane: unfiltered, real-world connection. For a society struggling with loneliness, digital fatigue, and emotional burnout, it may be time to treat these micro-interactions not as throwaway moments, but as therapeutic encounters. Both the doctor and the startup CEO, from Harvard labs to Jaipur streets, remind us that wellness isn't always found in a prescription bottle or a productivity app. Sometimes, it's waiting in line with a stranger, ready to say hello. ( Originally published on Jun 19, 2025 )
Hindustan Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Bengaluru fintech co-founder reveals raw truth behind why he started his company: ‘I didn't build to help shopkeepers'
A post shared by Okcredit co-founder and CEO Harsh Pokharna has touched people's hearts. In the post, he opened up about his insecurities and the raw truth behind launching the startup. 'I didn't build OkCredit to help shopkeepers. I built it because I wanted the world to clap for me,' wrote Pokharna. He then shared, 'In school, I was one of those kids you forget. Not the funny one. Not the charming one. Not even the nerdy topper. Other kids were cooler - Better English, better clothes, better hair, more confidence.' Hence, he wanted to do something big. 'I didn't give a shit about ledger books or UPI adoption in tier 2 towns. That all came later,' he continued. The founder confessed that his motivation wasn't rooted in changing the world—but in a deep personal desire to be seen, to matter, and to prove his worth. He continued that even today, a part of him still craves the applause, recognition, and validation that come with success. 'It feeds that broken part of me that still thinks he's not enough. People think startups are built on great ideas. But more often than not, they're built on childhood wounds. This post isn't advice. It's a mirror,' he expressed. An individual posted, 'Takes a lot to realise this and courage to speak these words. Inspiring.' Another added, 'Not many will dare to be candid, but this is so true & raw. No stories needed.' A third expressed, ''This post isn't advice. It's a mirror.' Totally got me. It is a raw truth that many people are not ready to discuss. More power to you!' A fourth wrote, 'We are all solving for the inner world before the outer one. I love this post and the vulnerability and honesty behind it. Harsh Pokharna, Keep inspiring others - we need many more like you!' Pokharna, an IITian, launched OkCredit with Gaurav Kunwar and Aditya Prasad. The young entrepreneurs were featured in 30 Under 30 Asia in 2020.
