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The Indian Venture Capital and Alternate Capital Association (IVCA) has joined hands with global professional services firm Deloitte to launch a handbook on startup governance. The handbook offers a framework of corporate governance guidelines to help startups build transparent and ethical businesses.

The launch of this guide is part of IVCA’s mission to educate Indian entrepreneurs on the building blocks of governance and foster a culture of trust, transparency, and authenticity in India’s burgeoning startup ecosystem, the firms said in a statement.

IVCA is India’s apex industry body for alternative assets and focuses on the investing ecosystem in India. Its members include domestic and global venture capital (VC) firms, private equity firms, funds for infrastructure and real estate, credit funds, limited partners, investment companies, family offices, corporate VCs, and knowledge partners. These funds invest in emerging companies, venture growth, buyout, special situations, distressed assets, and credit and venture debt, among others.

Titled ‘The Startup Governance Playbook’, the playbook includes inputs from various ecosystem partners, including founders, investors, experts, and academic and research institutions, to establish a holistic framework of governance for startups.

The guidelines are easy to implement and build upon, while the different corporate governance practices outlined in the playbook will serve as a reference point for startups during each of the key growth stages, the statement said.

India is the third-largest startup ecosystem. Buoyed by the strength of India’s core fundamentals, the ‘India Opportunity’ story is progressing at a brisk clip. In this context, laying a strong groundwork for corporate governance in the fast-maturing startup ecosystem will bolster India’s economic promise, it noted.

“Considering how the journey from ideation to scaling is fraught with difficulties, the corporate governance practices laid down in the IVCA–Deloitte Start-Up Governance Playbook will help entrepreneurs and investors to effectively navigate troubled waters and open up a sea of success,” said Rajat Tandon, President, IVCA.