Zoomcar co-founder David Back to drive strategy at Idein Ventures

Early-stage venture capital firm Idein Ventures has hired David Back, co-founder of self-drive car rental startup Zoomcar, as entrepreneur-in-residence.

Back will advise Idein and its portfolio companies on strategy, growth, hiring, compensation, legal structure, customer acquisition, monetisation approach, and fundraising, the investment company said in a press statement.

Founded by Rajeshwar Prasad, Mahesh Vellaboyina and Ashwin Srivastava, the VC firm is headquartered in Dubai and has offices in USA (Las Vegas and San Ramon) and India (Hyderabad and Mumbai).

Idein Ventures has invested in a number of startups in India and the UAE, including Infurnia, a Bangalore-based augmented-reality startup; Qriyo, a Jaipur-based home tutors company and ZoEasy, a UAE-based venture matching immigrant workers with safe and secure jobs.

"Very few people have as deep an understanding of the startup ecosystem of India plus Silicon Valley. David has been one of the pioneers behind bringing the current Indian startup scene to the global map, and we are sure our association with him will help set new precedents in the Indian and global venture capital industry," Srivastava said.

Back co-founded self-drive car rentals Zoomcar in India in February 2013 along with Greg Moran. The company has raised significant investments from Ford Motor Company, Sequoia Capital, Nokia Growth Partners, FundersClub, Empire Angels and former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai among others.

Back has worked as a consultant at McKinsey and as a research analyst at the Kauffman Foundation in the past. He resigned from Zoomcar in 2015.

"There is tremendous opportunity in Indian startups right now. Idein has a strong mandate to increase its venture capital presence in India and the UAE, and Idein's backers provide a network to help its ventures become global enterprises," Back said.