The "Full Stack Fintech" Playbook for Emerging Markets | Sandeep Patil (QED Investors)

"The First Law of Fintech: No amount of capital is enough to burn if your unit economics are broken."

Sandeep Patil stresses that while tech startups might get away with a "grow now, profit later" model, fintech is different. Because you are dealing with a balance sheet, having a clear line of sight to profitability on a per-customer or per-transaction basis is the absolute first filter for securing investment from a top-tier VC like QED.

Sandeep Patil is the Partner and Head of Asia at QED Investors, a premier global venture capital firm with $4.3 billion in assets under management that has backed 28 unicorn companies. Before his move into venture capital, Sandeep had a storied career as an operator. As the MD & CEO for India at Truecaller, he quadrupled revenues to over $100 million, drove the company to profitability, and paved the way for its successful IPO. Previously, as the Head of Fintech at Flipkart, he scaled consumer and SME lending products to benefit over 1.3 million borrowers.

• India's Unfair Advantage: Why India's digital public infrastructure (like UPI and the Account Aggregator framework) creates a unique, open environment for innovation that surpasses other global markets.
• The Operator-Investor DNA: How QED leverages its partners' deep operational experience to act as "consiglieres" or trusted advisors to their founders, providing practical advice beyond just capital.
• Regulation as a Feature: A contrarian view that a clear regulatory landscape is attractive because it builds customer trust and provides clarity for long-term operations.
• Avoiding the "Tourist VC" Trap: The importance of VCs committing to a geography long-term to help build the ecosystem, rather than just flying in to deploy capital when the market is hot.

Chapters

(00:00) Introduction

(01:28) The Capital One DNA: How the "First Fintech" Shaped a VC's Thesis

(07:35) Why QED Bet Big on India: The 3 Pillars of the Investment Thesis

(12:02) India's Secret Weapon: Unpacking the Digital Public Infrastructure (UPI, AA)

(19:13) The 3 Fintech Models VCs are Funding in India Right Now

(30:03) The Non-Negotiable Investment Filters: Unit Economics, Growth & Founder DNA

(37:35) From Seed to Series D: A Founder's Guide to Answering the Right Questions

(44:08) Beyond Strategy: Why People & Vision are The Only Things That Matter

(49:45) How to Get Noticed: The Best Way to Approach a Global VC like QED

(59:18) The Investor's Take on Crypto, DeFi, and the Future of Finance

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