Sasidhar has about a decade of experience in microfinance and livelihood promotion in India and abroad. He has extensive knowledge and skills in microfinance investments, field operations, policy analysis and institutional development. Sasi was among the early team of BASIX, where he was instrumental in developing new products and services, streamlining operational methodologies, launching greenfield ventures in some of the poorest regions of the country, training and building capacity of start-up MFIs in Eastern India and designing innovative livelihood interventions between 1999 and 2004.

Sashi as a researcher with CARE USA he studied and analyzed the transformation processes of CARE’s microfinance programs in Peru, Philippines and India during summer 2005. Sasi worked with MicroVest Capital Management, a Washington based microfinance investment fund, responsible for investments in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, South Asia and Africa from 2006 through 2008. Presently he is working as Manager, Global Business Strategy, International Housing Finance, with Habitat for Humanity International, a global NGO engaged in providing low cost housing to the poor. He is currently based in Washington DC, USA.

Sasi received his Masters degree in Public Affairs from the Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University, in 2006, with specialization in Economic Policy and International Development. He earned his Bachelors degree in agricultural sciences from Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University, Hyderabad, in 1996, and Postgraduate diploma in management from Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal, in 1999.

Vishal Bharat joined Caspian Advisors Pvt. Ltd. in April 2009. This is an investment management company focused on managing investment of funds in microfinance space. Presently they are managing the investments of Bellwether Microfinance Fund. Bellwether Microfinance Fund have invested in Trident Microfin Private Limited. Sri Vishal Bharat is nominated by the above fund on the Board of Trident Microfin Private Limited. He has over 14 years of corporate banking experience in multinational banks in three continents. He will be primarily focused on portfolio management for Caspian Advisors Pvt. Ltd. and will endeavour in co-creating value in the investee companies of the above Fund. Most recently, he was with JP Morgan Chase’s commercial bank for 9 years, relocating from Dallas, TX to Mumbai, India to launch the Commercial Bank in India. Vishal started with Citibank as an FX Trader followed by a stint as the Operations Manager in the Global Transactions Group. After that, Vishal launched the Global Cash Management Services for Standard Chartered Bank in India. Vishal has had an association with rural development and microfinance for 20 years. He worked with a rural cooperative bank in rural Rajasthan during his high school days and more recently he started, managed and eventually sold a “Fair Trade” business in Dallas, TX.

Vishal holds a Master of International Management Degree from Thunderbird, The Garvin School of International Management, Glendale AZ; Master of Business Administration from University of Delhi, India and Bachelor of Technology (Mechanical Engineering) from Banaras Hindu University, India.

Shilpa has over six years of experience in the microfinance sector. Part of the founding team of Caspian, Shilpa was instrumental in evolving a suitable and innovative legal structure for Bellwether, in compliance with complicated local laws. She has an intimate knowledge of corporate laws as well as other laws and regulations relevant to microfinance institutions. At Caspian, she has worked on the transformation of NGO-MFIs in to appropriate legal structures and has led the acquisition of six NBFCs for the Caspian Funds’ investees. She works closely with the investment team on structuring the Caspian Funds’ investments, overseeing legal due diligence, negotiating investment documentation and closing each investment. Investee companies, especially start-ups, have benefited from her advice on legal and compliance issues during the early stage of their functioning when in-house expertise has not yet been available to them. She also advises the management and Board of Caspian and its funds on corporate governance issues.

Prior to joining Bellwether, Shilpa spent two years with BASIX - a pioneering institution, also one of the first regulated MFIs in India. At BASIX, she was responsible for managing the legal affairs of three out of the four companies within the BASIX Group, which comprised a Non Banking Financial Company, a Section 25 Company, a Local Area Bank and a private holding company.

Shilpa graduated in Commerce from Osmania University (Hyderabad). She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Law from the University College of Law at Hyderabad. Shilpa is also an Associate member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India, New Delhi.

Rahul Jakatdar, Director: Rahul is a practicing Chartered Accountant since 1986. He is a founder partner of M/s Jakatdar & Shah, Chartered Accountants, Pune. He is a B.Com, CA, CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor, USA) and also passed the National Examination on Systems Audit conducted by Computer Society of India in January, 2000. His areas of experience, apart from routine areas of Accounting, Auditing, & Taxation, include Financial Consultancy for Small & Medium Scale manufacturing units, Internal audits, Systems analysis and review for improvements, ERP implementation, New company set-up such as company incorporation including foreign ownership companies, management support and providing out sourced services etc.

He was a visiting faculty member at Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune from 1987-1993. His areas of expertise include, accounting for compliance and Management reporting, finance, systems, internal/IS audit, Statutory Audits-Companies Act/Income Tax Act etc. He has working knowledge in the areas of indirect taxes and foreign exchange management.

Puli Kishore Kumar is the promoter and CEO of Trident. He brings with him more than 10 years of combined experience in the microfinance, commercial, rural development and banking sectors. He has a unique combination of extensive operational and funding experience coupled with excellent knowledge of the local microfinance market gained though his association with BASIX from 1999 to 2005 and with ICICI Bank thereafter.

Kishore was instrumental in designing and implementing microfinance best practices while working as Unit Head and Regional Manager in BASIX, India's leading livelihood promotion institution. He was the first operations manager at Krishna Bheema Samruddhi Local Area Bank, a BASIX subsidiary, and also led livelihood promotion initiatives. Upon leaving BASIX, Kishore managed ICICI Bank's microfinance business in Karnataka and went on to become Chief Manager for Karnataka State operations before moving on to launch Trident.

Kishore completed his MBA from Osmania Universty, Andhra Pradesh and Bachelors degree in Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry from Kakatiya University.