«India is no longer an emerging market story – it is a global centre of economic gravity»

A few days ago, thanks to Volker Varnholt of MRB Fund Partners AG, I had the opportunity to meet Dr. Ajay P. Singh, Co-Founding Managing Partner of RootBridge Capital, at MRB’s impressive offices on Fraumünsterstrasse in the heart of Zurich.

Dr. Singh and his team help investors gain access to the next generation of high-growth companies emerging from India. Trained as a theoretical physicist and holding a PhD from the Technical University of Munich, he combines analytical rigor with more than two decades of experience starting at McKinsey spanning strategy consulting, private equity, and entrepreneurship.

Having worked with founders, investors, and businesses from both sides of the investment table, he has developed a deep understanding of what drives sustainable long-term value creation. In addition, as Chief Representative of the Indian Chamber of Commerce in Germany, he plays an active role in strengthening economic ties between Europe and India.

Our conversation lasted about an hour and provided fascinating insights into India’s economic development, entrepreneurial ecosystem, and investment landscape. While I would not yet consider myself an expert on India, I left with a far deeper understanding of the country’s remarkable growth potential. I also gained valuable insights into RootBridge Capital’s investment approach, which offers an attractive opportunity for investors seeking exposure to one of the world’s most dynamic markets. Thomas J. Caduff, CEO, Fundplat LLC

• Caduff: Dr. Singh, investors have been hearing about India for years. Why do you believe the opportunity today is fundamentally different?

Singh: India is now the world’s fastest-growing major economy. A young population, rising incomes, rapid urbanisation, digital infrastructure, and increasing formalisation are combining to create one of the strongest domestic growth stories in the world.

Many investors still compare India to China. We believe that is the wrong approach. India is emerging as a democratic alternative, powered by a young and agile population that has grown up with the rule of law and individual freedoms, ready to interact and do business in a modern, digital, and AI-enabled society.

At RootBridge, we believe the world’s next centre of economic gravity is India. The question is no longer whether India will play a major role in global growth, but whether investors are positioned to participate in it. 

• Caduff: Why did you launch the RootBridge Diversified India Growth Fund, and what gap does it solve for investors?

We offer something that is difficult to replicate: local access, global professional standards, aligned interests, and exposure across both private and public markets. Dr. Ajay P. Singh

Singh: We launched the «RootBridge Diversified India Growth Fund» because we felt investors were only seeing part of the picture. Most India allocations focus exclusively on public markets. Yet less than 1% of India’s companies are listed, meaning a significant portion of the country’s value creation happens before businesses ever reach the stock exchange. At the same time, many private equity funds are highly concentrated, illiquid, and difficult to access.

Our solution was to build a strategy combining both private and public markets. This allows investors to access India’s growth across the entire company lifecycle – from high-growth private businesses to listed companies benefiting from long-term structural trends.

• Caduff: Many firms are now talking about India. What makes RootBridge uniquely positioned to help investors access this opportunity?

Singh: Our differentiation comes down to four key factors:

First, alignment. Investors invest alongside the RootBridge Managing Partners. We have meaningful personal capital invested in the strategy and are exposed to the same outcomes as our investors.

Second, access. Over the past two decades, we have built relationships across family offices, entrepreneurs, accelerators, venture funds, private equity firms, and corporate groups throughout India.

Third, a dual-engine strategy. Most managers focus either on private markets or public markets. We invest across both.

Fourth, a Swiss investment framework. While our sourcing and networks are deeply rooted in India, the fund is managed with Swiss standards of governance, transparency, and investor reporting through a Luxembourg institutional structure.

Our fund grew out of years of investing our own capital and helping our network of European family offices access opportunities in India. We offer something that is difficult to replicate: local access, global professional standards, aligned interests, and exposure across both private and public markets.