Zoho Corporation has invested Rs 70 crore in Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) to support the development of sovereign digital infrastructure in India and strengthen technology access for MSMEs.
The Chennai-based SaaS firm said the investment is aimed at making digital commerce more inclusive and interoperable for small businesses.
“India’s economy depends heavily on MSMEs, yet they face challenges on all fronts, from limited market access to structural constraints imposed by conventional digital platforms,” said Sivaramakrishnan Iswaran, CEO of Zoho Payment Technologies and Global Head of Finance and Operations BU at Zoho.
ONDC, backed by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), is building an interoperable ecommerce network designed to reduce entry barriers for businesses. The network processed 218 million transactions in FY26.
Zoho said products such as Vikra, Zoho Books, Zoho Inventory and Zoho Commerce are already helping MSMEs digitise operations and connect with the ONDC network.
ONDC added that its DigiDukaan initiative has onboarded over 10,000 kirana stores within months of launch, while order volumes for farmers, artisans and rural sellers grew 11X in FY26.
Last month, ONDC appointed Vibhor Jain as its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. Jain previously served as the Chief Operating Officer and was acting CEO during the leadership transition.
