Abhishek Goyal, co-founder of Tracxn, says that working as a programmer with Yahoo back in 2002 was like a “crash course” on the internet for him. Post Yahoo, he also worked at Amazon, and then joined Accel as a VC in 2008.
“In 2011, I left Accel as I wanted to be an entrepreneur. I realised that something very big is going to happen in the Indian startup ecosystem, the early signs were there, and I wanted to sort of be a part of that journey. When I began VC journey, I thought it’s too early to be a VC, as I wanted to build something on my own, and then re-think it later. Post this, I started my first venture, Urban Touch, which was into lifestyle, ecommerce, backed by Accel and Tiger. Then in 2013, Neha and I started Tracxn together.”
Abhishek Goyal, Co-founder of Tracxn [Image Credit: 100X Entrepreneur Podcast]
In 2013, Abhishek and Neha Singh launched Traxcn, which aims to become the largest platform tracking innovative startups, private companies, and emerging sectors across the world.
“Now, Traxcn comprises 600 people. We have customers in 40 countries, and today more than 70 Fortune 500 corporations work with us. And I kept doing angel along the side,” he adds.
Journey as an investor
Abhishek’s journey as an investor began with Accel Partners in 2008. In 2011, he placed his bets on Delhivery and invested all his savings. Since then, Abhishek has invested in 130 Indian startups as an angel investor.
He revealed that during his investment in Delhivery, he exhausted his savings and was not capable to pay his rent on time. He explains that while he had to borrow his rent money at the time, he knew it was more important for him to back Delhivery.
“When I met Sahil Barua, Co-founder of Delhivery, for the first time I knew he was somebody I should back. There was a lot of depth in his character, there was a lot of thought process, a lot of ambition, and a good background. If I didn’t back this person who else would I back,” Abhishek said.
“In the early days, maybe I did 10 deals in the first three years between 2011 and 2013, and then while working on Tracxn, this was like 60 deals over maybe four years. In recent times, it has been higher because the startup activity has just gone off the roof. So, there are many more interesting companies now than ever before,” he says.
In this episode of 100X Entrepreneur Podcast, Abhishek Goyal, talks about his work experience at Amazon and Yahoo, launching Tracxn, and his journey as an investor.
To know more, listen to the podcast here
Notes –
03:06 – Background with Yahoo & Amazon, joining Accel Partners
09:58 – The story behind Accel’s investment in Flipkart
16:33 – Identifying patterns and traits in successful founders
18:09 – Unlearning your existing beliefs as an investor
22:01 – Explaining Unicorn startups and the general notion of ownership amongst investors
29:47 – Importance of customer signals at an early stage
31:28 – “Capital doesn’t follow fundamentals, fundamentals follow the capital.”
36:10 – “10 years later we as Indians won’t be celebrating Unicorns.”
37:44 – Sectors he’s bullish for this decade: SaaS, EdTech, and Banking among others
46:42 – Preventing forced exits being an Angel investor
49:36 – Advice to first-time investors in Startups
55:01 – Reading and keeping himself updated with Startup news
