NSE's Ashishkumar Chauhan asks fintech entrepreneurs to stay grounded

NSE MD and CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan

Fintech entrepreneurs must be grounded and not believe in bluff, said Ashishkumar Chauhan, CEO of National Stock Exchange in the Moneycontrol Fintech Conclave held in Mumbai on December 18.

He added that entrepreneurs, no matter how good they are, face extreme circumstances which may prevent success. "But you still need to remain grounded, keep working, and continue to pivot as needed," he said.

Giving an example of NSE, Chauhan said it was supposed to be a model exchange for bond trading and after three months of trading, the bond market activity started declining.

After some time, the exchange’s leadership decided to launch equity trading by November 3, 1994—coinciding with Diwali. The decision shocked the team, Chauhan said. “Programming back then was not like today. Every change would take months, sometimes years. I told my boss it would take us at least two years to be ready. But he said, ‘No, whatever you have to do, do it. We are starting on November 3.”

This ambitious timeline required the team to adapt quickly and work relentlessly.

To which Chauhan said, "When I meet young founders or people in fintech, I empathize with the pressure they face. But that’s how life is. You have to run very hard just to stay in the same place, like being on a treadmill.”