ONDC CEO Thampy Koshy steps down after three-year stint

Thampy Koshy

Thampy Koshy, the founding managing director and chief executive officer of the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), has stepped down, sources told Moneycontrol, marking the end of a crucial chapter for the government-backed e-commerce network. 

Koshy's resignation comes nearly three years after he took charge of the initiative at ONDC aimed at democratising digital commerce in India. A former senior partner at EY, Koshy, was instrumental in shaping the early framework of ONDC, overseeing its pilot and then nation-wide rollout, and driving ecosystem participation from sellers, logistics providers, and buyer apps.

"Koshy has expressed his desire to step down while helping on with the change. The MD & CEO responsibilities have been transitioned to an executive committee with Koshy available to the board over the next 3 months for advise," ONDC has said in a statement.

His departure comes at a time when ONDC is looking to scale operations and deepen its presence across key categories such as food delivery, grocery, fashion, and mobility.

The ONDC board has set up an interim management committee to oversee daily operations and ensure business continuity, sources said.

The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), a government-backed initiative to democratize e-commerce in India, was launched in April 2022. Conceived by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), ONDC aims to create a level playing field by enabling small retailers and local businesses to participate in digital commerce through an open protocol.

Positioned as an alternative to network-centric models dominated by players like Amazon and Flipkart, ONDC seeks to unbundle the e-commerce ecosystem, allowing buyers and sellers to transact across platforms. Since its launch, ONDC has seen pilot operations across several cities and has onboarded a growing number of sellers, logistics providers, and network participants.

ONDC recorded around 1.5 crore transactions in February, more than double compared to a year ago, driven by volume growth in the mobility vertical, with experts projecting 15 crore overall transactions by the end of the fiscal, even as its retail orders continue to hover below the October peak.