Central Depository Services (India) Limited (CDSL) has launched Reimagine Ideathon 2.0, a nationwide student innovation initiative aimed at strengthening financial literacy, investor awareness and cyber safety, with a total prize pool of ₹11.5 lakh for the top five teams.
Launched during World Investor Week 2026 under the theme ‘Samajh Se Investing Simple’, the initiative supports the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (SEBI) Project Jagrook and complements its Mentoring of University/College Students by Trainers (MUST) programme.
The initiative comes amid a widening gap between financial awareness and market participation. SEBI’s Investor Survey 2025 found that around 3.21 crore households, representing 9.5% of India’s estimated 33.72 crore households, invest in securities market products, while 63% of households are aware of at least one such product. India’s demat account base has crossed 23 crore. Meanwhile, reported cyber fraud losses reached ₹22,495 crore in 2025, with 76% of reported financial losses linked to fake investment and trading scams, according to government data cited by CDSL.
CDSL Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Nehal Vora said the initiative would encourage students to develop accessible and engaging investor education solutions. Entries may include mobile applications, websites, chatbots, games, simulations and AI-enabled assistants.
The jury, chaired by S. Ramadorai, will assess innovation, user experience, impact, feasibility, scalability, accessibility and data protection. Registrations opened on October 7, 2026.
The inaugural edition attracted over 1,000 registrations from nearly 100 institutions across 21 states and two Union Territories. Details are available at https://ideathon.cdslindia.com/.