Carta vs Razorpay: Founders, CEOs and History
Carta was founded in 2012 by Henry Ward, Manu Kumar and is led by Henry Ward. Razorpay was founded in 2014 by Harshil Mathur, Shashank Kumar and is led by Harshil Mathur.
Company facts
Founders
Carta
Henry Ward
Henry Ward is the co-founder and CEO of Carta. He has led the company since founding it as eShares in 2012, through its 2017 rebrand, a $7.4 billion Series G in 2021, and expansion into fund administration, private equity, private credit, and legal services.
Manu Kumar
Manu Kumar co-founded eShares (now Carta) with Henry Ward in 2012 after suggesting Ward build software to replace the paper stock certificates Kumar received as an angel investor.
Razorpay
Harshil Mathur
Harshil Mathur co-founded Razorpay in 2014 with Shashank Kumar after struggling to set up online payments for a crowdfunding project.
Shashank Kumar
Shashank Kumar co-founded Razorpay in 2014 alongside Harshil Mathur. Frustrated by the absolute nightmare of integrating archaic, highly bureaucratic bank payment gateways (which took weeks of paperwork) while trying to build a crowdfunding site, he built Razo…
CEOs and their tenures
Carta
- Henry Ward2012–present
Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder
Co-founded eShares in 2012 and has served as CEO since; led the 2017 rebrand, the 2021 Series G at $7.4B, the 2024 exit from secondary trading, and the 2025-2026 expansion into private credit and legal services.
Source - Manu Kumar2012–present
Co-Founder
As Co-Founder, he recognized that the entire Silicon Valley ecosystem was running on broken, manual Excel spreadsheets, heavily guiding Henry Ward's early product strategy before stepping back.
Source
Razorpay
- Harshil Mathur2014–present
Co-founder & CEO
Grew Razorpay into one of India's largest payment companies, with ~$439 million (₹3,783 crore) FY25 revenue.
Source - Shashank Kumar2014–present
Co-founder & Managing Director
As Co-Founder and Managing Director, he acts as the absolute driving force behind the company's incredibly rapid product innovation, fiercely defending its dominance against legacy banks.
Source
Timeline: Carta and Razorpay side by side
2012Carta
eShares founded by Henry Ward and Manu Kumar
Started to replace paper stock certificates with electronic shares.
2013Carta
$1.8M seed round
K9 Ventures, Draper, and Scott Banister backed the company.
2014Razorpay
Harshil Mathur and Shashank Kumar found Razorpay to simplify online payments in India.
2015Razorpay
Joins Y Combinator's Winter 2015 batch.
2017Carta
Renamed Carta
eShares rebranded as Carta in November 2017.
2018Razorpay
Launches RazorpayX business banking and Razorpay Capital.
2019Carta
$300M Series E at $1.7B valuation
Led by Andreessen Horowitz.
2019Razorpay
Acquires fraud-detection startup Thirdwatch and payroll software startup Opfin.
2020Razorpay
Becomes a unicorn after a $100 million Series D led by GIC and Sequoia Capital India.
2021Carta
$500M Series G at $7.4B valuation
Led by Silver Lake and Lightspeed in August 2021.
2021Razorpay
Raises $375 million Series F at a $7.5 billion valuation; acquires TERA Finlabs.
2022Carta
Acquires Vauban and Capdesk
Two London-based platforms expanded Carta in Europe.
2022Razorpay
Acquires Curlec (Malaysia), Ezetap (offline POS), IZealiant and PoshVine; RBI pauses new online merchant onboarding pending its payment aggregator licence.
2023Razorpay
Receives final RBI authorisation as an online payment aggregator.
2024Carta
Exits secondary trading
Shut down its secondary trading business after a January 2024 customer controversy.
2025Carta
Acquires Sirvatus and Accelex
Added private credit loan operations and AI document extraction in October 2025.
2025Razorpay
Converts to Razorpay Software Limited and completes reverse flip of its parent from the US to India (May); FY25 revenue rises 65% to ~$439 million (₹3,783 crore).
2026Carta
Launches Carta Law; Pulley winds down
Acquired Avantia in May; rival Pulley announced in September it will close on December 8 and migrate customers to Carta.
2026Razorpay
Appoints IPO bankers (February) and confidentially files draft IPO papers with SEBI (June).
Acquisitions
Carta
- Avantia2026Undisclosed
- Sirvatus2025Undisclosed
- Accelex2025Undisclosed
- Vauban2022Undisclosed
- Capdesk2022Undisclosed
Razorpay
- Ezetap2022$200M
- Curlec2022Undisclosed
- IZealiant Technologies2022Undisclosed
- PoshVine2022Undisclosed
- Thirdwatch2019Undisclosed
Questions about Carta vs Razorpay
Who is the CEO of Carta, Inc. and Razorpay?
Carta, Inc. is led by Henry Ward and Razorpay is led by Harshil Mathur. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Carta, Inc. founded vs Razorpay?
Carta, Inc. was founded in 2012 — 2 years before Razorpay, which was founded in 2014. Carta, Inc.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Razorpay.
How many employees does Carta, Inc. have compared to Razorpay?
Carta, Inc. employs approximately 1,900 people, while Razorpay employs approximately 3,500. Razorpay has the larger workforce at 3,500 employees, compared to Carta, Inc.'s 1,900. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Carta, Inc. and Razorpay headquartered?
Carta, Inc. is headquartered in United States and Razorpay is headquartered in India. Their different home markets mean they may face different regulatory frameworks, tax regimes, and currency exposure.
Who founded Carta, Inc. and Razorpay?
Carta, Inc. was founded by Henry Ward, Manu Kumar. Razorpay was founded by Harshil Mathur, Shashank Kumar.
Which company has a longer operating history — Carta, Inc. or Razorpay?
Carta, Inc. has been operating for approximately 14 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Razorpay has been in operation for around 12 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Carta vs Razorpay overview