We Want To Be A Global Company

Last year was quite a bonanza for Smart Card IT Solutions (SCIT).

Demonetisation-driven push for digital transactions and a new entrant in the telecom space helped the Mumbai-headquartered smart card manufacturer grow rapidly. Deven Mehta, the young and enterprising chairman and managing director of SCIT, is certainly pleased with his company's performance even as he draws up big plans for coming years.

The 47-year-old ace investor - whose big bets in cherry picking and hand holding start-ups have earned him name, fame and riches - has steered SCIT to become one of the country's largest smart card-makers. With two world-class plants in Shirur near Pune and an upcoming one in Turbhe near Mumbai with annual production capacity of 55 crore smart cards - churning out 2.5 crore smart cards per month, the company is a market leader in the telecom vertical and a major player in the banking and government identity verticals. SCIT is now geared up to make a splash across overseas markets, reveals Mr Mehta, as he shares his company's big plans with Amit Brahmabhatt in an engaging interview.

People know Deven Mehta more as a strategic investor. How did you get into manufacturing?

As a strategic investor, I used to meet a lot of promoters who had ideas for me to invest in. However, I had never invested in anything greenfield. Then suddenly, a greenfield project came by. Somebody from Pune approached me to become a working partner in a smart card manufacturing venture. My immediate reaction was negative. But then, after a lot of research about the industry, which is worth about $58 billion globally, I finally got into the venture.

Will you take us through the exciting journey traversed by SCIT to become one of India's largest smart card companies?