Bengaluru: VerSe Innovation, an AI-powered local language technology platform and the parent company of Dailyhunt, Josh, NexVerse.ai, VerSe Collab, Magzter, and ValueLeaf, has announced the appointment of Prakashan Manikoth as its Group Chief Financial Officer (Group CFO).
Based in Bengaluru, Prakashan will lead VerSe Innovation’s global finance function with a sharp focus on strategic financial planning, investor relations, M&A, capital allocation, and long-term business strategy. He will play a pivotal role in driving finance and process transformation, strengthening risk, compliance, and governance frameworks, and embedding a gold standard of corporate governance. Prakashan will also anchor the company’s IPO readiness journey—backed by strong financial discipline, transparent reporting, and robust internal controls.
With over 25 years of financial leadership experience, Prakashan brings a distinguished track record from some of India’s most respected institutions. He spent nearly two decades across Wipro and the TATA Group (TCS & Tata Teleservices), where he served as Head of Finance for TCS’s Emerging Market business & TCS BaNCS (core banking & financial services products business) and Finance Head of Wipro’s Global Operations and Global Delivery functions. Most recently, he was the Chief Financial Officer of LeadSquared, a high-growth SaaS unicorn, where he played a key role in scaling global operations and driving sustained growth.
A Chartered Accountant and alumnus of the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta (IIM-C), Prakashan combines strategic thinking with financial rigor, hallmarks that have defined his leadership across high-growth and enterprise-scale organisations.
Umang Bedi, Co-Founder, VerSe Innovation, commented, “We are delighted to welcome Prakashan to VerSe Innovation’s leadership team. His deep domain expertise and proven experience across global technology enterprises make him the perfect partner to guide our financial strategy as we accelerate toward becoming India’s first global AI-led technology powerhouse. His leadership will be critical as we scale responsibly, deepen our governance standards, and gear up for our IPO journey.”
Prakashan Manikoth added, “I am thrilled to join VerSe Innovation at such a transformative time in its journey. VerSe is redefining how Bharat engages with content, creators, and commerce—powered by cutting-edge AI and bold ambition. I look forward to partnering with the founders and leadership team to amplify impact, driving sustainable enterprise value creation for all stakeholders, and help shape the company’s global financial trajectory.”
In FY25, VerSe Innovation achieved 88% revenue growth, reaching a total revenue of ₹2,071 crore, while reducing burn by 20%. The company is poised to achieve group-level profitability in the second half of the fiscal year, underpinned by its robust AI-first product portfolio that includes NexVerse.ai, Dailyhunt Premium, Josh, and VerSe Collab.
