OTPless, a Bengaluru based identity and access management startup, has elevated early team member Manas Poddar to the role of Chief Business Officer. The appointment completes a leadership restructuring that recently saw cofounders Satyam Nathani and Tanmay Sagar become Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer respectively. Poddar will now lead revenue, enterprise sales, and strategic partnerships as the company expands from authentication into broader identity infrastructure.
Origins and Market Problem
OTPless was cofounded in 2023 by Satyam Nathani and Tanmay Sagar, who previously worked as founding members at BharatPe. The founders set out to address a persistent question in Indian consumer technology: why logins still depend on SMS OTPs despite their cost and security limitations. Poddar joined the founding team after working with them at BharatPe and helped secure the company's first enterprise onboarding with Classplus in 2023.
Leadership Transition and Responsibilities
Poddar joined OTPless in 2023 as one of its earliest team members and has led the business vertical since then. Before joining the startup, he worked at BharatPe from 2020 to 2022, where he contributed to the technical team involved in the PMC Bank revival and groundwork for Unity Small Finance Bank. His elevation follows the September 18 announcement that cofounders Satyam Nathani and Tanmay Sagar would serve as CEO and COO.
Company Growth and Profitability
OTPless says it has scaled to more than 300 million authenticated users and reached ₹360 million in annualized revenue, representing 2.5X year-on-year growth. The startup, which operates with a 12 member team, has been profitable for the past two quarters and serves clients such as Meesho, Zepto, Navi, PhysicsWallah, ShareChat, Shiprocket, and ixigo. It has raised US$6.5 million from investors including Venture Highway, White Venture, FJ Labs, SIDBI, and Piper Serica.
Authentication Technology and Client Base
The company provides authentication and identity solutions to consumer businesses through technologies such as Silent Network Authentication, WhatsApp Authentication, Device Intelligence, and Passkeys. Its platform authenticates more than 300 million users and counts Meesho, Zepto, Navi, PhysicsWallah, ShareChat, Shiprocket, and ixigo among its clients. These tools are designed to replace dependence on SMS OTPs at the critical login moment.
Executive Perspectives
Satyam Nathani, Co-founder and CEO of OTPless, said Poddar has built the relationships that convinced India's largest consumer apps to trust the company. Poddar described his focus as deepening partnerships and helping build the identity layer for India's internet. Both leaders framed the appointment as central to OTPless's move from authentication into broader identity infrastructure.
Strategic Expansion Plans
Poddar's appointment is part of a broader effort to expand OTPless from a login-focused service into a full identity infrastructure provider. The company's leadership now combines technical founding experience from BharatPe with an early business leader who helped secure large enterprise clients. This structure is intended to support deeper enterprise relationships and new identity products beyond authentication.
With a new leadership team in place, OTPless is positioning itself to move beyond SMS OTP-based authentication and into a broader identity infrastructure role. The company's growth metrics, profitability, and client roster suggest that its alternative authentication technologies are gaining acceptance among large consumer platforms. Poddar's elevation signals a clear intent to scale enterprise sales and partnerships during the next phase of expansion.