Mumbai: ET NOW, India’s leading English Business News Channel, hosted the IDFC FIRST Bank Presents ET NOW Leaders of Tomorrow Awards Season 12 in New Delhi. As India’s premier platform celebrating entrepreneurial excellence, the Leaders of Tomorrow Awards Season 12, themed ‘Powering Entrepreneurs for the Global Stage,’ recognized enterprises that are scaling within India while making a significant impact on the global market. The landmark event honoured entrepreneurs redefining excellence across 14 categories, along with 3 IDFC FIRST Bank Rising Star Awards and 4 Editorial Awards, showcasing emerging enterprises selected through a rigorous pan-India screening and expert jury evaluation.
Delivering the Keynote address at the event on ‘Empowering India’s MSMEs for Global Leadership’ Shri Anurag Singh Thakur, Former Union Minister, Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Coal, Mines & Steel, said, “Over the past decade, India has risen from the ‘Fragile Five’ to one of the world’s top five economies, and in the next three years, we are set to become the third-largest economy globally. The government has actively supported MSMEs through financial reforms, ease of doing business initiatives, and credit access programs like Mudra Loans and Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme. Today, India is home to over 1.6 lakh start-ups and 117 unicorns, proving that our youth are building enterprises that compete on the global stage. Our vision for Viksit Bharat 2047 is powered by MSMEs that are integrating into global supply chains, focusing on quality and innovation.”
Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, NSE, shed light on the transformative role of capital markets in empowering MSMEs. He added, “India’s thriving capital market is an anomaly, as traditionally, only wealthy nations develop strong investment ecosystems. However, with 11 crore registered investors and 21 crore accounts, India is now uniquely positioned to fund entrepreneurial dreams. MSMEs must leverage capital markets to boost credibility, secure funding, and scale their businesses.”
Discussing global economic shifts, he added, “The world is moving from a unipolar system (dominated by the U.S.) to a multipolar system, where India is emerging as a key player alongside major economies. Historical events, such as the U.S. strategically engaging with China in the 1970s to pull it away from Russia, gave China economic advantages that fuelled its rapid growth. However, today, the U.S. and other Western nations are reassessing their relationships and shifting their focus toward India and other emerging economies. The decline of global regulatory frameworks, such as the WTO (World Trade Organization), suggests that large economies are now prioritizing bilateral agreements over multilateral trade rules.”
Chinmay Dhoble, Head Retail Liabilities & Branch Banking, IDFC FIRST Bank said,“With 6.7 crore MSMEs driving GDP and employment, their true growth lies in productivity and efficiency. While large corporations lead in scale, MSMEs fuel job creation and innovation. They are not a monolith but a diverse, evolving force that needs tailored financial support. Access to finance, advisory services, and digital solutions—like IDFC FIRST Bank’s zero-fee banking, AI-driven insights, and startup mentorship—will be the key to unlocking their full potential and propelling them up the value chain.”
The event hosted engaging panel discussions, uniting industry leaders to exchange insights, share expertise, and inspire the next generation of entrepreneurs. The leaders and visionaries from the entrepreneurial space included Chinmay Dhoble, Head Retail Liabilities & Branch Banking, IDFC FIRST Bank; Akis Evangelidis, Co-Founder & India President, Nothing; Aman Gupta, Co-founder & CMO, boAt Lifestyle; Dr. A Velumani, Creator, Thyrocare; Anand Mane, founder, Joul; Bert Mueller, Founder, California Burrito; Spencer Schneier, Founder, Commenda; Radha Kirthivasan, Head, Listing and SME, BSE; Vivek Gambhir, Venture Partner, Lightspeed India; Padmaja Ruparel, Co-Founder, IAN Group; Anisha Singh, Founder, She Capital.