Powering India's Securities Market with Next-Gen Thinking

A movement towards responsible innovation and Atmanirbharta.

Winners of the Inaugural CDSL Ideathon 2026

Being Felicitated by Shri Tuhin Kanta Pandey, Chairman, SEBI

1^st

Team Sahayak

Rakshith Kumar J.

₹ 5 Lakhs

2^nd

Team Khet Nivesh

Shikhar Shahi, Lavanya Bani,
Jigyasa Tiwari, Yogendra Tiwari

₹ 3 Lakhs

3^rd

Team NIVI

Ananth G. Kowlagi,
Jeet Bagdai, Chiranth Yadalam

₹ 2 Lakhs

4^th

Team Nivesh Shiksha

Ayush Singh Negi,
Hrishabh Thakur, Udayini Gupta

₹ 0.75 Lakhs

5^th

Team Veritas

Sanjay Chidambaram, Farhan Hafiz,
Sharvari P. Bhat, Manaswini

₹ 0.75 Lakhs

"India's economic ascent will be powered by bold thinkers with vision and conviction. This Ideathon is not just about ideas, it's about impact. It's about bringing more Indians into the financial fold and enabling them to choose what's right for their future. An educated investor is a protected investor; empowered to make informed decisions that reflect their unique needs and aspirations. And students have the insight and imagination to drive this vision forward. So, step up, lead the change, and help augment an investing culture that is inclusive, confident, and truly Atmanirbhar."

Mr. Nehal Vora

MD & CEO, Central Depository Services (India) Limited

"India's securities markets are evolving rapidly - and with them, the opportunity to empower every investor. Reimagine Ideathon is a call to action for young minds to shape inclusive, confident investing. Let's unlock ideas that simplify finance, inspire trust, and build Atmanirbhar investors. Your innovation can power India's financial future. Dream boldly, design fearlessly, and help shape India's financial future."

Mr. Akhilesh Tuteja

Head - Clients & Markets, KPMG in India

Executive Summary

India's securities market is at an inflection point. We are among the world's fastest growing economies, with immense growth opportunity in the securities market ahead of us. Reimagine Ideathon invites student innovators (teams of up to four students and 1 faculty mentor) to design bold, practical ideas that make investing simple, engaging, and empowering for every Indian – across diverse geographies, languages, and demographics. Grounded in behavioural insight, we are seeking ideas that build confidence, reduce inhibitions, and deepen trust enabling more households to benefit from India's growth story.

At its heart, this is a call to empower and motivate investors to take charge of their financial journey – transforming today's informed actions into tomorrow's security and resilience. The goal is to help investors build confidence and develop an informed understanding of product suitability aligned with their unique needs and aspirations. Your ideas should turn awareness into action, hesitation into confidence, and learners into truly Atmanirbhar Investors.

This will happen over the course of three rounds:

Screening Round: Submit a PDF with clear sections on the Idea, Challenges, Risks & Assumptions and Business Impact. Refer to Entry Submission Form on the website https://ideathon.cdslindia.com
Round 1: Present your idea in a 20-minute PowerPoint presentation to the Jury over Video Conference.
Round 2: Finalists will be invited to present their idea to the Jury in-person, in Mumbai. A working prototype/demonstration will be preferred, however, not mandatory.

Remember

Cite all sources and follow the Bottom Line Upfront and Keep It Short & Simple principles.
Ideas will be judged on innovation, functionality, behavioural impact, scalability, and clarity.
Please refer to the FAQs on the website https://ideathon.cdslindia.com.

PART A: Background & Problem Statement

Background

As one of the world's largest securities market, India now faces its most exciting opportunity: turning scale into real investor empowerment. With 337 million households and a rapidly expanding appetite beyond metro cities, the opportunity to bring millions more into the financial fold has never been greater. With 207 million demat accounts across 32 million households already engaged, India is laying the foundation for a truly inclusive investing culture, one that is expanding rapidly.

CDSL's data reveals an incredible and complex landscape:

80% of demat accounts are from Tier II and beyond cities, showing strong interest outside metros.
Yet only 20% of accounts belong to women, revealing a persistent gender gap.
As of October 31, 2025, the youngest demat account holder is 31 days old, a striking indicator of the steadily decreasing age of the country's investor base.
Most households continue to prioritize capital preservation over returns, indicating a cautious investment mindset.

These inferences signal both opportunity and challenge. While access has expanded, behavioural and informational barriers continue to limit wider participation.

This Ideathon challenges you to reimagine investor education and engagement through your chosen combination of innovation, technology, and design thinking - to inspire responsible participation, simplify complexity, and enable Atmanirbharta in investing.

Earlier in 2025, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the regulatory authority for India's securities market, conducted a nationwide survey to gain insights into investor behaviour and preferences. The findings spotlight several key areas, which you may explore as part of this Ideathon.

Breaking the Barriers - What stops people from investing? Is it fear, confusion, or lack of trust?
Powering the Motivators - What encourages people to invest? Is it seeing others invest, easy tools, goals, or fun learning?
Closing the Gaps - Why do people stop investing? Is it market ups and downs, bad experiences, or not seeing value?
Sparking the Nudge - What pushes people to make smart money choices? Is it life goals, reminders, challenges, or rewards?

Your Challenge

You are invited to imagine bold ideas that changes how India learns about, invests in, and grows through the financial markets - making investing more responsible, inclusive, and rewarding for everyone.

The goal is to help more people become smart and responsible investors. How you do it is up to you: through creative design, smart technology, simple communication, or building strong communities.

Your idea should reflect three core values:

Empowerment - helping investors make informed, independent decisions.
Inclusion - making investing accessible to everyone, no matter their gender, location, language, ability, or financial background.
Trust - building confidence through simplicity, transparency, and responsible investing.

Make sure your idea works for people across India, for example, by using local languages, including people with disabilities, or helping both new and experienced investors understand which products and strategies suit them best.

Please refrain from submitting ideas that include stock tips, investment advice, or buy/sell recommendations, as such submissions will not be considered for evaluation. This challenge is about helping investors learn and make their own informed decisions.

Part B: Evaluation

Evaluation

All submissions will be evaluated by a multi-disciplinary Jury who will be looking for ideas which embody the following:

Dimension	Criteria	Description
Innovation & Creativity	Innovation	Originality of the idea
Innovation & Creativity	Technical Complexity	Technology proposed
Functionality & Inclusion	User Experience (UX) & User Interface (UI)	Quality of design, ease of navigation, and user engagement
Functionality & Inclusion	Functionality	How effectively the idea performs its intended tasks
Behavioural Insight	Impact & Usefulness	Practical value and relevance to users or society
Feasibility & Strategic Clarity	Feasibility	How well the idea addresses the problem and how realistic it is to implement
	Viability	Potential for adoption, and handling of risk and limitations
	Clarity of Presentation	Presentation skills, conviction, and spirit of innovation

The jury will prioritize ideas that are innovative & actionable, aspirational & ethical, and capable of driving measurable change.

There will be extra points for "out-of-the-box" thinking. So put your thinking caps on!!!

Expected Outcomes

Winning ideas may focus on:

Simplifying financial literacy and easing investor anxiety.
Promoting responsible, long-term investing behaviour.
Making investor education engaging, inclusive, and measurable.
Encouraging participation among new and diverse investor segments.
Building enduring trust in India's securities market.

Deliverables and Stages

Screening Phase

Objective: Submit a concise and compelling overview of your idea in the prescribed format. Please refer to Entry Submission Form on the website https://ideathon.cdslindia.com.
Screening will be done basis the key parameters mentioned in Part B - Evaluation. The decision of the Jury will be final.
Format: Maximum 3 pages, PDF format (prepared in any document editor such as MS Word, Open Office, etc.)

Disclaimer: Use of AI tools is permitted solely as an aid to enhance your idea. By submitting, you confirm that your idea is not substantially generated by AI and reflects original human input.

Round 1: Jury Presentation

Please Note: Shortlisted teams will be informed on their registered email ID

Objective: Shortlisted teams to present their idea over video conferencing.
Format: Present your idea to the Jury through a 20-minute using PowerPoint presentation over Video Conference.

Use your imagination on how you want to showcase your idea to the Jury.

Round 2: Final Demonstration

Please Note: Finalists will be informed on their registered email ID

Objective: Finalists to demonstrate how your idea works.
Deliverable: In-person presentation in front of Jury, in Mumbai. A working or demonstrable prototype such as App, Website, Chatbot, Dashboard or any other format that best demonstrates your idea would be preferable but not mandatory.

Please refer to FAQs on website https://ideathon.cdslindia.com for any pertinent questions. However, if you have questions beyond FAQ, or simply wish to say hello!, please reach out to us on [email protected].