In November, when India’s government unexpectedly scrapped 86% of the country’s currency notes, Vijay Shekhar Sharma seized the moment. As Indians scrambled to exchange the 41 notes for new currency, Paytm, Sharma’s digital payments startup, went on a promotional spree. With 42 ads, Sharma invited Indians to start using Paytm’s digital wallet to pay for everyday goods and services. 

It worked. By the end of 2016, Paytm had 177 million users, 43 122 million at the beginning of the year. Vijay had catapulted himself into a nation’s consciousness. It was a 44 by a small-town boy who studied in a Hindi medium school before conquering the country’s Anglophone startup world. Now backed by Jack Ma of Alibaba, an investor in Paytm, Vjjay is 45 into the more heavily regulated world of banking, with plans to offer digital accounts. He will face new challenges from deep-pocketed and more-experienced competitors, but knowing ViJay, he will win the next time around, too.