Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST)

What Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST) does

Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST) is a not-for-profit Trust founded in 1992 and headquartered at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi, operating from CII's premises as its institutional strategic partner. It is the first organization globally to replicate the UK's Prince's Trust youth entrepreneurship model outside the United Kingdom, founded by Ms. Lakshmi V. Venkatesan following a 1990 meeting with HRH The Prince of Wales. BYST serves disadvantaged Indian youth aged 18–35, with specific focus on women entrepreneurs and rural "Grampreneurs®," combining mentoring by experienced business professionals, training (EDP and MDP programs), business plan support, monitoring, and loan facilitation via a consortium of partner banks. The organization is led by a Board of Trustees chaired by Shri Subodh Bhargava (former Chairman, Tata Communications) with Late Shri Rahul Bajaj (Bajaj Auto) as Patron, and is part of the Youth Business International (YBI) global network.

BYST's service delivery rests on a multi-channel digital and human-touch platform: a website (byst.org.in and bystonline.org), a chatbot, a toll-free Grampreneur® Helpline (1800 121 181 181), a mobile Mentor App, emailers, and an active social media presence, supplemented by field counseling across cluster locations in cities including Bhubaneswar, Pune, Kolhapur, Hyderabad, Ranchi, Rayagada and Chennai. Cumulative disclosed impact includes 2.5 million youth outreached, 200,000 trained, 51,000+ grampreneurs supported, 22,000 mentors trained (with 6,189 formally accredited by City and Guilds UK), INR 850 Crores in bank loans facilitated, INR 5,000 Crores in estimated wealth generated by supported enterprises, and 500,000 jobs created.

BYST generates no revenue from beneficiaries — all services (mentoring, training, business plan development, networking, loan facilitation) are provided at no cost. The organization is funded through CSR contributions and grants from a roster of 20+ corporate partners including Tata Steel, Bajaj Auto, JP Morgan, Godrej, AIG, JK Paper, Diageo's Keep Walking Fund, HDFC Bank Parivartan, and historically Google.org for COVID-response programming. Banking partners — SBI, Bank of Maharashtra, HDFC Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Bank of Baroda — provide loan products to BYST-supported entrepreneurs without BYST taking a financial spread. BYST does not publicly disclose its own operating budget.

Name

Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST)

Legal name

Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust

Website

https://byst.org.in

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST) is a non-profit Trust founded in 1992 in New Delhi that mentors and supports disadvantaged Indian youth aged 18–35 — including rural Grampreneurs® and women — to start and grow enterprises, combining training, mentoring, and bank-loan facilitation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New Delhi

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Non-profit Support Services: BYST is a not-for-profit organization that provides entrepreneurship development support, mentoring, training, and loan facilitation services at no cost to beneficiaries. The organization is funded through corporate partnerships, strategic partners like CII, and donor organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST) is a non-profit trust that provides free entrepreneurship development support to disadvantaged Indian youth aged 18-35. Its core offering includes business mentoring by accredited professionals, business plan development, training under the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) and Management Development Programme (MDP), loan facilitation through partner banks (average Rs. 5 lakhs, up to Rs. 100 lakhs), and ongoing monitoring and networking support to help transform business ideas into viable, self-sustaining enterprises.

Product overview

BYST operates as an integrated entrepreneurship development platform offering multiple digital and human-touch channels. The core product portfolio includes the BYST Website (byst.org.in), BYST Chatbot, BYST Grampreneur® Helpline, BYST Newsletters & Emailers, BYST Social Media Accounts, and BYST Mentor App. These channels deliver programmatic offerings including the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) and Management Development Programme (MDP). The ecosystem supports underprivileged youth entrepreneurs through a blend of digital platforms, personal mentoring, training, business plan development, monitoring, and financing support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Grampreneurs®: A registered trademark term used by BYST to describe rural entrepreneurs supported by the organization.

Products and services

• Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) Core BYST programme helping disadvantaged Indian youth develop business ideas into viable enterprises with mentor guidance, financing support, training, monitoring, and networking. Offered free of charge to beneficiaries across multiple Indian cluster locations.
• Management Development Programme (MDP) Programme focused on developing management skills and business capabilities among entrepreneurs, complementing EDP with deeper operational and managerial training for growing enterprises.
• BYST Mentor Application Mobile application for mentors to engage with and support entrepreneurs, featuring content, blogs, and member access for the BYST mentor community.
• BYST Grampreneur Helpline (1800 121 181 181) Toll-free helpline providing phone-based counseling and guidance to aspiring grampreneurs and entrepreneurs seeking BYST services.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10% of supported entrepreneurs become millionaires
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1992Strategic partner since inception. CII provides institutional support, office space, and helps shape regional and national agendas in entrepreneurship development. BYST operates from CII's India Habitat Centre premises.
• Youth Business International (YBI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1992YBI is a global network of expert organizations in over 50 countries supporting underserved young people. BYST has been part of YBI network since inception, providing access to international best practices, awards, and global entrepreneur summits.
• Tata SteelmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner providing support through CSR initiatives. One of the flagship corporate partners of BYST.
• Bajaj AutomajorGTM or Marketing PartnerBajaj Auto supports BYST through BA-BYST Mentoring Programme. Late Shri Rahul Bajaj was Patron of BYST and Chairman of Bajaj Auto Limited.
• JK PapermajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner supporting BYST's entrepreneurship programs.
• GodrejmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner contributing to BYST's mission through CSR initiatives.
• American Insurance Group (AIG)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner supporting BYST's entrepreneurship development initiatives.
• City and Guilds, UKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK's largest vocational awarding body has accredited over 6,189 BYST mentors through training and certification programs.
• C.K. Birla GroupmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner with Shri C K Birla as Chairman on BYST's Board of Trustees.
• International Labour Organization (ILO)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational organization collaborating on youth entrepreneurship development.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• TechnoServe: Global nonprofit that builds businesses in developing countries to reduce poverty, with a strong India presence focused on smallholder and rural entrepreneurs. Comparable business-development-plus-facilitation model serving rural SMEs.
• Enactus: International nonprofit working with student teams on entrepreneurial projects that create social and economic impact, with strong corporate partner networks. Comparable youth-led entrepreneurship development mission with a global footprint.
• Youth Business International (YBI): The global network of which BYST is a member organization, spanning 50+ countries and supporting disadvantaged young entrepreneurs with mentoring and access to finance. YBI is BYST's direct peer in mission, model, and even its brand origin (Prince's Trust / Prince of Wales).
• Wadhwani Foundation (National Entrepreneurship Network - NEN): India-headquartered foundation running large-scale entrepreneurship development, mentoring and accelerator programs for underserved founders, with global reach. Closest India-based peer to BYST in model and target segment.
• Cherie Blair Foundation for Women: UK-founded foundation focused on women's entrepreneurship in developing economies, providing mentoring, skills, and access to capital/financial services. Overlaps with BYST's women entrepreneur segment and rural entrepreneurship focus.
• Prince's Trust: The original UK youth entrepreneurship charity founded by Prince Charles whose model BYST explicitly replicates in India. Operates the same mentor-led, financing-supported enterprise program for disadvantaged 11-30 year olds.
• Junior Achievement Worldwide: Global nonprofit delivering entrepreneurship, work-readiness and financial literacy programs to young people, with national operating chapters. Operates a comparable mission of youth entrepreneurship capability-building using corporate volunteers.

Regional players

• TIE (The Indus Entrepreneurs): Global, India-rooted nonprofit fostering entrepreneurship through mentoring networks, chapters and events. Comparable mentoring ethos and trustee-led governance, but target segment skews more affluent / earlier-stage venture founders than BYST's disadvantaged-youth focus.
• Deshpande Foundation: India- and US-based foundation focused on fostering entrepreneurship and innovation in underserved communities, including rural and agricultural regions. Directly comparable rural-entrepreneurship development mission with similar scaling aspirations.

Emerging players

• CIIE.CO (IIM Ahmedabad): Indian innovation and entrepreneurship hub affiliated with IIM Ahmedabad, supporting early-stage ventures including social enterprises. Adjacent peer — overlap is partial and skewed toward slightly more venture-ready founders.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCVgldbt9fFNruxQzNjRuaMA?view_as=subscriber
• Facebookfacebook.com/FollowBYST
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/followbyst

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

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