Murdoch company snaps up Mumbai startup

MUMBAI: Rupert Murdoch-controlled global media giant News Corp on Saturday acquired city-based startup BigDecisions.com that helps consumers take investment calls through decision-making tools backed by sophisticated algorithms and data. Started in early 2013 by Manish Shah, an IIM-Ahmedabad alumnus, and Gaurav Roy, who passed out from IIT-Bombay, BigDecisions.com has already helped about 40,000 people make decisions ranging from life and health insurance, retirement planning, buying and renting real estate to planning for a child’s education.
The deal value, that included acquisition of the site’s parent FinDirect Services, was not disclosed.
This is News Corp’s second major investment in the startup space. In November, it had acquired a 25% stake in PropTiger.com, a residential real estate platform for accurate and independent data and information for homebuyers in the country.
“BigDecisions.com will help Indians make the most important decisions by using accurate information tailored to their personal needs,” Robert Thomson, CEO, News Corp was quoted in a release from the company.

Rupert Murdoch
Post the acquisition, the co-founders, who have management as well as technology backgrounds between them, will help expand BigDecisions.com’s operations. The company will not be merged into any of News Corp’s existing businesses in India which include Dow Jones, The Wall Street Journal, Factiva and HarperCollins Publishers.
“The intention is to run it as a standalone business to help customers, handhold them to make better financial decisions,” Shah told TOI.