Darius Pandole

Bio

Darius joined New Silk Route Advisors at its inception in February 2007 and focuses on private equity opportunities in the Indian sub-continent out of the Mumbai office. Darius previously worked at IDFC PE Ltd. which he joined in February 2003. Darius was the Executive Director, and later Chief Operating Officer of this asset management company that managed the India Development Fund, an infrastructure focused private equity fund. The India Development Fund was the largest domestic private equity fund in India at that time and Darius was part of the start-up team responsible for raising and managing this fund. While at IDFC PE, Darius participated as a Director on the Boards of portfolio companies and also represented the firm in interactions with regulatory authorities and at industry forums, such as the SEBI, IVCA, etc. In February 1999, Darius co-founded and served as Managing Director of IndAsia Fund Advisors Pvt. Ltd., the Indian advisor to the AMP-IndAsia India Fund – a private equity fund established in partnership with AMP of Australia. Whilst establishing this fund, he completed numerous successful private equity investments in the Information Technology, Telecom and Media sectors on a “club basis”. Prior to this, in 1997, Darius joined the investment team at the IndOcean Fund, amongst the first private equity funds to be established in India. The IndOcean Fund was established in partnership with Chase Capital Partners and Soros Fund Management. As a principal at this Fund, he was involved in evaluating potential investment proposals and in working with portfolio companies. Upon his return from the US in1993, Darius managed the operations of his family owned soft drinks business, Duke and Sons Limited, which was a market leader in Western India. Darius was responsible for the marketing strategy and sales execution, as well as for the finance and treasury management functions. He led the negotiations that culminated in a successful sale of the business to PepsiCo. Darius has a BA (Economics) from Harvard and an MBA from the University of Chicago. He is a frequent speaker at venture capital industry forums in India.