Cred, a fintech unicorn that formerly focused on lending and payments, has now expanded into the distribution of insurance goods, starting with auto insurance.
According to Akshay Aedula, head of product and growth at Cred, the company is using its vehicle management platform, Cred Garage, to market insurance products to its users. Depending on the users’ credit scores, Cred offers extra discounts to make the product more appealing.
What is Garage?
Cred customers can monitor their car expenses, outstanding traffic “challans,” and the dates of their insurance and pollution renewals on the Garage portal. In the event of a roadside breakdown, they can also receive assistance. Cred hopes to make money from the programme by collecting commissions from insurance companies, even though car management is free.
There are almost 7 million registered cars on the platform, and there are 4.4 million users—some of whom have more than one car registered in their name. Last September, the platform was launched. Approximately 11 million of Cred’s 13 million monthly users engage in active transactions.
According to Aedulia, Cred’s fundamental belief is to reward good conduct, which is why it has collaborated with three insurance providers to develop an insurance product that gives clients with high credit ratings extra savings on their premiums.
Working With Three Insurance Companies
To provide these products to its clients, the company, which holds a corporate agency licence from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDAI), has collaborated with Zurich Kotak General Insurance, Go Digit General Insurance, and ICICI Lombard. A corporate agency is an insurance distributor that has the capacity to collaborate with nine insurance companies. An entity will require the insurance broking licence in order to engage with more.
According to Aedulia, Cred is expanding this cooperation and is collaborating with a few additional insurance providers. As of right now, the IRDAI has approved the company’s product. Cred’s entry into the insurance market rounds out its range of financial services operations, which began with credit card bill payment and progressed to wealth management, credit, and the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). According to a recent statement from the corporation, payments, credit, and insurance account for 90% of its total revenue.
In addition to having an internal, non-banking finance company called Newtap Finance, Cred has a significant distribution role in personal financing. In February 2024, Cred bought Kuvera for its money management service. Through Garage, Cred has now established its own insurance distribution company.
In FY24, the company reported total sales of INR 2,473 crore, a 66% increase over FY15. With its employee stock ownership plans included, its net loss came to INR 1,644 crore, a 22% increase from the previous year. According to Tracxn data, the firm has raised $866 million and was last valued at approximately $6.2 billion in 2022.
A renowned non-banking finance company (NBFC), L&T Finance, has just announced its strategic push into the co-lending industry. This foray is being made possible by a significant partnership with the technology powerhouse CRED.
With the help of this partnership, L&T Finance will be able to expand its operations into the realm of digital lending by providing CRED members with the opportunity to get unsecured personal loans.
The CRED Cash product, which is being enabled by L&T Finance in cooperation with Newtap Finance Private Ltd., will now provide members of CRED with access to credit, as stated in the official statement.
A speedy access to credit is promised by the new arrangement, which will enable members to obtain loans in a matter of minutes. Additionally, the new arrangement will provide members with flexible repayment terms and competitive interest rates.
Sudipta Roy, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of L&T Finance, expressed his excitement about the company’s entry into the co-lending industry by saying, “We are excited to announce our partnership with CRED.”
This affiliation represents LTF’s entry into the co-lending area, which will harness the power of LTF’s considerable experience in the financial services industry, CRED’s large wealthy client base and excellent reputation for trustworthiness, and NewTap’s competence in digital lending and risk assessment. This association will mark LTF’s introduction into the co-lending field.
The Partnership and Its Future
L&T Finance is currently going through a period of tremendous expansion, which coincides with the formation of this collaboration. The loan book of the company experienced year-on-year growth of 11 per cent, eventually reaching INR 6,667 crores in the first quarter of fiscal year 25.
The total disbursements for the quarter amounted to INR 1,178 crores. It is anticipated that the Personal Loans business at L&T Finance will continue on its upward trajectory, which will be driven by strategic alliances, development into new geographical areas, and initiatives to retain customers.
Within the field of co-lending, this relationship between L&T Finance and CRED is well-positioned to establish a new standard of excellence. This platform will provide A sophisticated audience with a simplified and customer-focused loan experience.
Regarding the future of the partnership, Roy stated further that L&T believes that this partnership will further enhance the company’s presence in the digital lending space with a focus on customer experience.
Additionally, the firm thinks that this partnership will provide CRED’s customers with loans in a couple of minutes with flexible repayment tenures, at competitive interest rates, thereby providing customers with a borrowing experience that is both unique and seamless.
According to a media agency, several prominent fintech companies have decided to participate in the digital currency pilot program run by the Indian central bank. These companies include Google Pay, PhonePe, Cred, Mobikwik, and AmazonPay.
According to sources who spoke with the news agency, the corporations will accomplish this by providing e-rupee transactions.
Notably, the digital currency pilot program was launched by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in December 2022.
At first, the only financial institutions authorized to sell e-rupee through their mobile apps were the central bank. However, fintechs were also permitted to offer e-rupee transactions after RBI’s permission in April of this year.
Then, rumor has it that fintech companies are requesting the central bank clarify the norms of interaction with banks so they can implement use cases for central bank digital currency (CBDC).
Fintech companies are reportedly collaborating with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), and the domestic payment authorities in preparation for the e-rupee’s launch in the coming three to four months, according to a prominent news agency’s report.
According to the research, the number of digital currency transactions has dropped significantly from over 1 million per day last year to about 1-2 lakh each day.
Use Cases for Retail CBDCs
This news arrives as reports surface that banks are collaborating with fintech entrepreneurs on a range of fronts to launch retail use cases for Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDCs).
The first round of the CBDC retail trial for NBPSOs is testing two significant use cases. One involves corporate cost management and the other involves subsidy payments for agricultural supplies.
Banks are presently focussing on deploying these use cases, and they will now also collaborate closely with fintech firms to support the CBDC trial.
Following the beginning of the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) experiment in December 2022, RBI deputy governor T Rabi Sankar announced in April that 2.2 crore transactions had been handled.
What is CBDC?
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has created CBDCs, a digital token equivalent to the Rupee. Using distributed ledger technology (DLT), it could one day replace physical currency with digital transactions.
The CBDC pilot has been serving both the wholesale and retail sectors since its start in 2022, and an increasing number of institutions are rushing to become a part of it.
The country’s Central Bank unveiled new features, like the ability to make CBDC retail payments offline and using user-defined algorithms, in February of this year to boost CBDC sales.
On Thursday, the financial management platform CRED introduced CRED Money, which provides a unified view of a user’s balances, transactions, and patterns across bank accounts.
According to a statement from the fintech business CRED Money, directed by Kunal Shah, “CRED Money is built on the account aggregator (AA) framework that allows users to securely share their bank account information with authorised vendors. “
Users will receive updates and reminders through the platform, and it will offer to make regular payments directly using CRED UPI, making it easy to manage things like SIPs, EMIs, rent, staff wages, and insurance premiums.
How CRED Money Can Benefit Its Users?
Users can gain insight into their financial habits by searching as a merchant or category and analyzing spending patterns across their bank accounts. Customers may conveniently monitor all of their transactions, including dividends from investments that were forgotten, payment reversals, tax refunds, and more. The new product from CRED makes use of cutting-edge data science to transform raw data into useful insights, letting customers make better financial plans and use their funds more wisely.
Prioritise Customers With High Incomes
Midway through 2022, CRED sought out users with worse credit scores, but these users did not engage with the platform. Beginning in the middle of 2023, the business once again started prioritizing the acquisition of consumers with higher credit scores.
With the launch of their luxury rewards program “Only Fridays,” CRED is putting an emphasis on engaging with premium consumers. This program is open to users who have earned over one million CRED Coins from paying credit card bills.
Customers who have spent a total of one million rupees on CRED have earned one coin for every rupee worth of credit card bills.
Recognizing UPI’s success among wealthy clients, the business is actively pursuing this demographic. CRED has been successful in expanding its UPI share, even though credit cards remain its primary business emphasis.
Players Providing Similar Services
Apps like this one are available from ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, and Fi Money, and they all offer a centralized hub for managing all of their clients’ bank accounts and transactions. Customers do get a consolidated picture when they use a FinTech payment app to pay for subscriptions, insurance, and utility bills.
Despite CRED’s expansion beyond credit card payments to offer wealth management, eCommerce, travel, and automobile products and services in the recent few quarters, a media agency claimed last month that the company’s user growth has stopped at 13 million subscribers over the last 18 months.
As smaller companies gained headway in India’s unified payments interface in June, the share of total transactions processed by Walmart Inc.-owned PhonePe and Alphabet Inc.’s Google Pay declined slightly. From 48.67% in May to 48.37% now, PhonePe’s percentage of all UPI transactions has decreased.
According to data issued by the National Payments Corporation of India, Google Pay’s fraction decreased from 37.18% last month to 36.76%. The total number of transactions processed by the UPI network in June was 13.88 billion, down 1% from the previous month.
New Entrants Giving a Tough Run to Established Players
Many new companies have recently entered the UPI payments market. More than 80% of the market is controlled by PhonePe and Google Pay, but new competitors are threatening their supremacy.
For example, in June, there was a 17% increase to 75 million UPI transactions on the apps of Axis Bank Ltd. and a 20% increase to 35.7 million transactions on the Navi app. Another UPI payment option is super.money, which was introduced by Flipkart, a subsidiary business of PhonePe and an eCommerce giant in India. The JioFinance app, developed by Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Financial Services, also joined the competition, allowing users to access the growing financial scene in India.
Paytm Comes to a Standstill
Paytm, which was experiencing a regulatory setback, managed to maintain its 8% market share from the previous month, which indicates that the market loss that has been occurring since the beginning of the year has come to a standstill.
After the Reserve Bank of India issued an order earlier this year to come close to shutting down Paytm’s banking unit, the company’s net loss for the first quarter of the fiscal year, which ended in June, more than doubled to INR 8.39 billion, which is equivalent to $100 million.
Cred Becomes the Fourth-Largest Player in the Game
Based on the information provided by the NPCI, CRED has established itself as the fourth largest player in the processing of UPI payments. It is interesting to note that it has exceeded Amazon Pay, WhatsApp, and BHIM, and it has handled more than one-third of the total value of transactions that Paytm has processed in the past month.
Praveena Rai, the chief operating officer (COO) of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), has stated that the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is gaining approximately 6 million new users each month.
In addition, the NPCI has established a lofty objective of reaching one billion transactions per day within the next several years.
“You’ll rarely meet successful people who are not exciting,” Kunal Shah.
Kunal Shah is a standout figure in India’s start-up world, particularly in the fintech sector. As a co-founder of Freecharge, he’s played a pivotal role in transforming digital payments in India, making transactions smoother and more accessible. His innovative vision has not only driven Freecharge to remarkable success but has also made a significant impact on the global fintech stage. Later, Shah launched CRED, a popular rewards platform that has captured the attention of many in India. Known for its user-friendly interface and fantastic rewards, CRED has quickly become a household name in the country’s startup realm. Shah’s journey, from a philosophy graduate to a billionaire entrepreneur, is a powerful example of how innovative ideas and dedication can lead to remarkable success. His story serves as a guiding light for aspiring entrepreneurs in India, showcasing the endless possibilities that come with curiosity and ambition.
Kunal Shah – Biography
Name
Kunal Shah
Born
May 20, 1983
Education
BA in Philosophy – Wilson College, Mumbai MBA – Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (dropout), Mumbai
Kunal Shah, born on May 20, 1983, in Mumbai, Maharashtra, hailed from a family where his father worked as a businessman, and he often assisted him. When Shah was just 14, his family faced financial difficulties due to his father’s struggling business. To help out, he began working at the age of 15. He completed his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from Wilson College in Mumbai. Although he started an MBA at Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies in Mumbai, he decided to leave the program. Shah’s spouse, Bhavna Shah, works as a freelance graphic designer.
Kunal Shah – Early Life
Shah’s journey into entrepreneurship showcases his unwavering determination and love for innovation. Growing up in Mumbai, India, he showed an early interest in technology and business. After finishing his studies, Shah set out on his entrepreneurial path. His journey began with PaisaBack, his first startup launched in 2009. Initially focusing on promotional discounts, laid the groundwork for his future endeavors. Following this success, Shah, along with Sandeep Tandon, co-founded Freecharge in 2010. Their goal was to revolutionize the payment landscape by offering a simple way for users to recharge their phones and pay bills online. Then, in 2018, he established CRED, a platform for managing credit cards that rewards users for responsible card usage.
Kunal Shah – Career
Under Shah’s guidance, Freecharge rapidly gained popularity, attracting millions of users and catching the eye of investors. In 2015, the company made headlines by being acquired by Snapdeal, a major Indian eCommerce platform, in a groundbreaking deal worth over $400 million. This acquisition was a significant milestone for Shah and Freecharge, confirming the success of their innovative business model and positioning them as leaders in India’s growing fintech sector.
A key factor contributing to Freecharge’s rapid growth was Shah’s keen understanding of consumer behavior and market trends. He identified the increasing demand for digital payment solutions in India, driven by the widespread use of smartphones and internet access. Building on this insight, Shah and his team created a user-friendly platform that simplified the recharge process and rewarded users with cashback and discounts, a novel concept at the time.
In 2018, Shah ventured into a new endeavor by launching CRED, a platform that incentivizes users to pay their credit card bills on time. With CRED, Shah aimed to tackle the rising issue of credit card debt while offering exclusive benefits to users. Once again, Shah showcased his ability to identify untapped market opportunities and develop innovative solutions. The platform’s premium membership program offers exclusive rewards and benefits to its members.
CRED quickly became one of India’s most popular financial apps, with over 10 million downloads and processing about 20% of the country’s credit card payments. Its unique approach to credit card management, combined with its focus on building a community of high-creditworthy individuals, resonated strongly with users nationwide. Today, CRED has millions of members and is one of India’s most valuable fintech startups, with Shah leading its growth and expansion. With $200 million in funding, CRED achieved a $2 billion valuation in 2021.
CRED – Financials
Kunal Shah – Journey so Far
Kunal Shah’s journey, from co-founding Freecharge to launching CRED, showcases his exceptional leadership skills and entrepreneurial talent. His continuous drive for innovation, combined with his deep grasp of consumer behavior, has propelled him to the forefront of India’s fintech revolution. As he continues to explore new avenues and push the boundaries of what’s possible, Shah serves as a guiding inspiration for aspiring entrepreneurs and plays a vital role in shaping the future of digital payments.
Shah’s impact extends beyond his startups. He’s a prolific angel investor, backing over 200 companies, including successful ventures like Razorpay, Unacademy, and Innov8.
Apart from his entrepreneurial ventures, Shah is renowned for his insightful perspectives on technology, business, and human behavior. As an active speaker and thought leader, he frequently shares his expertise and insights on various platforms, providing valuable guidance to aspiring entrepreneurs and industry enthusiasts alike. Shah’s astute understanding of emerging trends and his knack for anticipating market shifts have earned him widespread recognition and admiration within the startup community.
Kunal Shah – FreeCharge
In 2010, Shah leaped and established FreeCharge, a digital payments firm offering discounts and cashback to users for their transactions. Initially focusing on mobile recharges, he swiftly broadened its scope to encompass other services like bill payments. Through his innovative approach and unwavering determination, Shah transformed FreeCharge into a widely recognized name in India’s digital payments sector. The company experienced rapid growth, attracting investor interest and culminating in one of the largest acquisitions in India’s startup landscape. In 2015, Snapdeal acquired FreeCharge for an impressive $400 million, solidifying Shah’s reputation as a prominent entrepreneur in the country.
Kunal Shah – CRED
Noticing the confusion many Indians faced with credit cards, Kunal Shah identified an opportunity to simplify credit card management and improve financial control. In 2018, he established CRED, a platform rewarding users for responsible credit card usage. Because of Shah’s vision, CRED has become one of India’s most popular financial apps. Its user base has grown swiftly, and the platform now offers services such as credit score tracking, bill reminders, and convenient payments for multiple credit cards. CRED’s premium membership program also provides exclusive rewards and benefits. Additionally, CRED allows users to make house rent payments and offers short-term credit lines. By April 2021, the company had attracted over 5.9 million users and processed around 20% of all credit card bill payments in India. CRED introduced six products, including Cred RentPay, Cred Cash, and Cred Pay. Moreover, in August 2021, CRED launched Cred Mint, a Peer-to-peer lending feature aiming to monetize its 7.5 million users. CRED served as the official sponsor of the Indian Premier League (IPL) from 2020 to 2022.
Kunal Shah’s investment portfolio boasts a remarkable 259 ventures. His most recent involvement was in Nurturev’s Pre Seed Round on February 28, 2024, where the company successfully secured $1 million in funding.
Announced Date
Organization Name
Funding Round
February 28, 2024
Nurturev
Pre-seed Round
February 14, 2024
Segwise
Pre-seed Round
February 8, 2024
Neodocs
Seed Round
January 9, 2024
MyMuse India
Seed Round
January 2, 2024
VRO Hospitality
Venture Round
November 27, 2023
ELIVAAS
Seed Round
November 7, 2023
OnFinance AI
Seed Round
November 3, 2023
Jugyah
Seed Round
October 31, 2023
FreshBus
Seed Round
October 18, 2023
Tap Invest
Seed Round
Kunal Shah – Philanthropy
Shah strongly believes in innovation’s ability to bring about positive transformations and uplift communities. Through his charitable efforts and mentorship initiatives, he actively encourages and guides aspiring entrepreneurs, enabling them to pursue their ambitions and make significant contributions. His steadfast dedication to fostering innovation and entrepreneurship reflects his broader goal of creating a better and more equitable future for everyone.
‘We’re Not Realizing The Risks Of AI’ Says CRED Founder Kunal Shah
Kunal Shah – Controversies
Cred has faced criticism for being overvalued and lacking a clear strategy for making money.
Shah sparked a debate on social media by asserting that success comes from personal effort rather than being inherited.
CRED’s CEO Shah, faced backlash after revealing his salary. During an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session on Instagram, he disclosed his monthly salary. Responding to a user who was surprised by his modest salary, Shah explained that he earns ₹15,000 per month because he believes he shouldn’t receive a higher salary until the company becomes profitable. He also mentioned that he could manage with this salary because he sold his previous company, FreeCharge, for a significant amount.
Kunal Shah – Awards and Recognitions
Kunal Shah has received many awards and honors for his remarkable journey, highlighting his creative ideas, entrepreneurial talent, and leadership abilities. Some of his notable achievements include:
Forbes India Leadership Awards (2015)
Entrepreneur of the Year (2016)
Top 10 Most Innovative CEOs (2017)
Young Business Leader (2018)
India’s Most Admired Entrepreneur (2019)
Impactful Tech Leader (2020)
FAQs
Who is Kunal Shah?
Kunal Shah is an entrepreneur, an angel investor, and founder of fintech company CRED and FreeCharge.
What is CRED about?
CRED allows credit card users to pay their credit card bills through its platform and extends rewards for each transaction. CRED has become one of India’s most popular financial apps.
When was FreeCharge founded?
In 2010, Kunal Shah established FreeCharge which is a digital payments firm offering discounts and cashback to users for their transactions.
Unacademy, Slice, RazorPay, ChefKart, Khatabook, and Digit Insurance are all companies that have two things in common. They are all a part of the Indian startup ecosystem and they are all a part of the Kunal Shah Investment Portfolio.
He is a man with many adjectives – an active angel investor, serial entrepreneur, mentor, and advisor. The Indian startup ecosystem recognizes Kunal Shah as the Founder & CEO of CRED, a fin-tech Indian unicorn. He fulfills the advisory role in multiple well-known organizations like Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd., AngelList, Sequoia Capital, and the Indian division of Y Combinator. The enigmatic man has an investment portfolio that is more than 200 startups strong. In 2021, Hurun India said Kunal Shah held the most number of investments in startups that may become unicorns in the next few years.
A source close to Kunal Shah said – “Kunal really wants to do what he can for the ecosystem. If that one random founder can sell his company’s story to investors because Kunal Shah’s name is on his pitch deck, he does not mind that. This is his version of philanthropy.”
Most Successful Kunal Shah’s Investment
Over the years many startups that have been funded by Kunal Shah have seen phenomenal success. Of course, some have missed the mark but the successful one have been on a growth and expansion journey that is inspirational.
1. Unacademy
Unacademy
Unacademy is an ed-tech platform that was founded in 2015 by Gaurav Munjal, Hemesh Singh, and Roman Saini and is headquartered in Bangalore. It began unconventionally as a YouTube tutorial channel of short videos by Gaurav Munjal, then an engineering student n himself. By December 2015, Hemesh and Roman joined him to launch the Unacademy app which aimed at creating free interactive content.
It quickly gained popularity and by 2017 more than 5000 educators, 1 million learners, and more than 40,000 classes were launched. In January 2017, Unacademy raised USD 4.5 million in Series A funding and a year later it acquired the Jaipur-based online exam preparation and learning platform WIFIStudy for USD 10 million. Its growth continued as it launched its subscription-based model Unacademy Plus in 2019. In the same year, it also secured funding of approximately USD 87 million from investors. 2020 saw Unacademy achieve the coveted unicorn status and was named as one of the official sponsors of the Indian Premier League for 2020-2022. It also raised a Series G funding in November 2020 at a valuation of USD 2 billion. A year later, in 2021, it raised USD 440 million in a series of H funding. The beginning of this year saw Unacademy become one of the founding members of IAMAI’s India Edtech consortium.
2. RazorPay
Razorpay
Shashank Kumar and Harshil Mathur founded the fintech company Razorpay in 2015 which is headquartered in Bangalore. It was the fintech startup’s aim to provide frictionless transactions for online businesses with clean, developer-friendly APIs and hassle-free integration.
It earned unicorn status in 2020 amidst the Covid-19 pandemic through its October 2020 funding round and raising USD 100 million. In December 2021, it raised USD 375 million in Series F funding and became the most valued fintech startup in India at USD 7.5 billion as of December 2021. Razorpay’s total funding as of June 2022 is USD 815.7 million.
The growth trajectory of Razorpay has been consistent throughout the years. In 2017 it launched four products namely Route, Smart Collect, Subscriptions, and Invoices allowing businesses to manage multiple aspects of money movement. It also launched a subsidiary named Razorpay Capital, a lending platform supporting SMEs with easy and quick access to lenders. As technology is evolving, Razorpay is adding more and better features including introducing Razorpay X. Razorpay X is a unique solution allowing businesses to conduct every activity that is offered by banks.
3. Digit Insurance
Digit Insurance
Headquartered in Bangalore, Digit Insurance was founded by Kamlesh Goyal in 2017. As the name suggests, the company primarily deals in insurance products and financial services. Digit Insurance’s product portfolio includes health insurance, car insurance, commercial vehicle insurance, 2-wheeler insurance, and travel insurance.
The insurance firm has gone through eight funding rounds and raised a total funding of USD 530.8 million. It reached unicorn status in 2021. As of January 2022, Digit Insurance was valued at approximately USD 3.54 billion.
Since its inception, Digit Insurance’s growth has been consistent and it witnessed its highest growth in 2020 with 31.9% and earning a premium of USD 186 million between April 2020 and December 2020. This growth amidst the Covid-19 lockdowns and subsequent restrictions was owed to two of their products – Covid Health Insurance and Fire Insurance. In FY 2021-2022 Digit Insurance recorded its total gross recorded premium since inception at USD 52.68 billion. The insurance company is considering an IPO in a bid to raise USD 500 million to be listed by January 2023.
4. Khatabook
Khata Book
It is popularly known as Digital India’s Digital Khata. It was launched in 2018 in Bangalore by Ashish Sonone, Dhanesh Kumar, Vaibhav Kalpe, and Jaideep Poonia and has emerged as India’s fastest-growing SaaS company. Khatabook is a business management app, operating on an Android platform that enables MSMEs to keep a digital log of their financial transactions and digitize their accounting. The app also supports online payments and is available in 12 regional languages which cater to a diverse audience.
By the year 2020, Khatabook had a user base of merchants from 95% of Indian districts recording USD 100 billion in transactions and more than 150 million customers. The business has witnessed a phenomenal growth trajectory by registering more than 5 crore businesses spread over more than 4000 cities across India.
Khatabook has raised a total of USD 186.5 million in its four rounds of funding. As of August 2021, Khatabook was valued at approximately USD 600 million. Going forward, Khatabook intends to grow its business two or three times by remaining committed to the MSME segment and simplifying the traditional way of doing business. Its app is already widely accepted within the MSME framework of the country. Khatabook is now looking forward to offering disbursement of financial services through its tech platform.
Conclusion
Over the years, there are many startups that Kunal Shah has funded. The success stories that have emerged from these investments are proof of the ingenuity of the Indian entrepreneurial mind. These companies have grown and expanded and show every sign of marching forward into the future with their focus firmly on making their businesses better and more innovative. Some of the new startups that Kunal has invested in are AntWalk, BimaPlan, Bundle-O-Joy, Coffee and many more within the time this article was framed. The future looks promising and it will be interesting to see which of these startups make it to the next generation of unicorns.
FAQs
Is Kunal an angel Shah investor?
Kunal Shah has topped the list of angel investors with more than 200 investments done across startups such as Razorpay, Unacademy, Khatabook, Mensa, Digit Insurance, and more.
What is the qualification of Kunal Shah?
Kunal Shah graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from Wilson College, Mumbai, and briefly pursued an MBA from SVKM’s NMIMS before dropping out.
Cred is a popular fintech company founded by Kunal Shah in 2018. It is a reward-based credit card payments startup. Recently, Cred raised $80 million in its latest funding round at a $6.4 billion valuation. Even after making a loss of Rs 524 crore in FY21 why is this company getting so many investors? Is Cred more than just a credit card payment app?
To find answers to these questions let’s see what acquisitions Cred has made in recent times. This will give us a clear idea of the future plans of Cred.
In October 2021, Cred acquired HipBar, an alcohol delivery and payment startup. Cred was interested in this deal because HipBar has a prepaid payment instrument license (PPI).
Now, what is PPI? It is a prepaid payment instrument that allows the payment of goods and services, including fund transfers against the value stored on the prepaid card. RBI has issued this license to only 37 firms in the country.
Using the PPI licence, Cred can issue cash vouchers and prepaid cards and can facilitate digital wallets for the Cred community.
Cred’s holding firm Dreamplug Technologies has held the share capital of Prasanna Natarajan, founder and CEO of HipBar and Rajalakshmi Natarajan, co-founder and director of HipBar.
Kunal Shah and his brother Rohan Shah have joined the board of HipBar as directors. Rajalakshmi has resigned from the company. Although Prasanna is still a director.
With this acquisition, Cred will now directly give cashback to the user’s wallet instead of their bank accounts. Users can then use the wallet to pay credit card bills and purchase products from its merchant partners.
This is a smart strategy by the company to make the customers stay connected with their ecosystem.
“It appears to be a smart move as the wallet would enable CRED to drive repeat transactions through its own payment instrument,” said one of the entrepreneurs who doesn’t want his name mentioned in the article.
Parfait Finance and Investment
In November 2021 Kunal Shah acquired a non-banking finance company, Parfait Finance and Investment. RBI has approved this acquisition and it will help the company to extend its lending services to its users.
This acquisition is part of Kunal Shah’s plans to provide a range of financial services to its exclusive Cred community. The company is already providing loans through a partnership with IDFC First Bank.
The company has also launched Cred Mint by partnering with LiquiLoans, an RBI-registered P2P non-banking lender. Cred Mint allows users to lend money to other Cred users.
The company has also applied for a payments aggregator license. Using this license Cred can process the payment of merchants with consumers online. The merchants can accept payments in the form of debit cards, credit cards, e-wallets, or bank transfers.
The payments aggregator license will help Cred to enable e-commerce on its platform.
Happay
Happay Logo
In December 2021, Cred acquired Happay, a corporate expense management platform, in a cash-and-stock deal at a valuation of $180 million.
Happay is a business expense, payments and travel management platform that manages work-related expenses for over 1 million users globally.
This deal allows Happay to work as a separate company but its employees will work closely with Cred to help the company scale its business and add new financial services for the Cred users.
The 230 member team of Happay will get all the benefits that the employees of Cred get, including its ESOP program.
“The move will bring in synergies between Cred, the majority of whose members are professionals who use it to manage personal payments across multiple credit cards, and Happay, the only unified platform for business expenses, payments, and travel bookings,” a statement by Cred said.
Happay’s in-house payments system will help the Cred users to manage their expenses on their credit cards.
“With professional expenses forming a significant portion of credit card spends, bringing professional expense management into the Cred ecosystem is a natural extension of our proposition,” Kunal Shah said.
Conclusion
As you can see Kunal Shah is making Cred future ready. The company is unveiling multiple revenue verticals in the form of house rental payments, lending and wallet payment business along with e-commerce.
These acquisitions show us that Cred in the future might become a banking institution for its exclusive users. It will make the platform an irreversible ecosystem for its exclusive Cred community.
FAQs
How many startups Cred has acquired?
In total, Cred has acquired 3 startups. HipBar, which is an alcohol delivery and payment startup, Parfait Finance and Investment, which is a non-banking finance company and Happay, is a corporate expense management platform which will allow users to manage their expenses on their credit cards using the Cred app.
Is Cred approved by RBI?
The services that Cred offers to its users do not require the approval of RBI. The credit score of the users is verified by a credit rating agency which is also authorized by the RBI.
Is Cred a unicorn startup?
Cred entered the unicorn club in 2021 after raising $215 million in funding, at a post-money valuation of $2.2 billion.
Anil Kapoor is one of the most loved stars of Hindi cinema. Having delivered some of the most iconic dialogues and songs since the 90s, Anil Kapoor continues to shine. I mean who doesn’t remember the iconic “Jhakaas’ ‘ and who hasn’t watched Mr. India.
Being called Bollywood’s fitness icon, because of the secret youth potion that basically makes him younger by age, actor Anil Kapoor is a complete package of enthusiasm, fame, and humility. Throughout his entire career of 40 years in Hindi cinema, Kapoor has endorsed a large variety of brands. But it is very recent that a noticeable rise in his endorsements is seen. Meanwhile, he has and continues to benefit all these brands with his charm and popularity over the years.
He is also best known for taking up unique and challenging projects and brands under his umbrella. This way Kapoor has become one of the favorite faces in the advertisement industry. Many such brands that he endorsed are mentioned here.
Spotify featured Anil Kapoor in a cool series of advertisements along with Ishaan Khattar. Anil Kapoor has been seen appearing as a parent to Ishaan Khattar in this endorsement. Music Streaming App, Spotify doesn’t fail to show how cool Anil Kapoor is for a typical parent. He is seen adapting to modernity. The series of Spotify ads really justifies the evergreen title given to him. Presenting himself as a cooler version of dad, he was caught in various interesting situations with Ishaan Khattar which are delightful to watch. The sketch is humorous in its kind. These ads are as hit as his movies.
Anil Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter Spotify Ad
Cred
Anil Kapoor Cred Ad
The versatile credit card bill payment app, CRED gained instant attention with its series of quirky ads. One of them features Anil Kapoor who has been seen dancing in his iconic Lakhan character from an actor’s famous movie- Ram Lakhan. His delightful performance with Lakhan’s charm compels the viewers to come back and watch the commercial again and again. With catchy background music highlighting the brand and Anil Kapoor’s outstanding Lakhan dance, the advertisement catches the eyes of the viewers. Seeing exciting energy showcased by Anil Kapoor makes the customers curious about the product.
A unique smart grid technology patented sleeping solution mattress brand- The Sleep Company focuses on the comfort of the customer. Being a D2C business, the sleep company directly targets the buyer. As per reports, Anil Kapoor is a personal fan of the mattress brand as he is impressed by the comfort it provides. His belief in the product makes the customer really like the brand. With the tagline “backed by science,” the advertisement featuring Anil Kapoor is smart and sophisticated.
Anil Kapoor The Sleep Company Ad
Malabar Gold and Diamond
Anil Kapoor Malabar Gold and Diamonds Ad
With a handful of big Bollywood names already associated with the brand ambassador list, Kerala-based expensive metal retailer brand- Malabar Gold and Diamonds sparkled as bright as the jewels it offered when Anil Kapoor stepped in as brand ambassador. The actor was seen in the series of ads with great elegance. With the never-ending demand for gold in Indian households, It got a lot easier for the brand to capture the customers when popular personalities like Anil Kapoor appeared as its face. undoubtedly, he poured every ounce of elegance into the ads. As we all can see in the ad, Anil Kapoor did a great job representing it.
Licious
Licious is a fast emerging online meat delivery startup. The brand focuses on the delivery of fresh meat at the doorstep. It features Anil Kapoor and Arjun Kapoor. In the advertisement, both of them are seen cooking and enjoying fresh fish with the message of Consumption of fresh meat. The Popularity element brought in by the duo with 4 million views on Youtube helped Licious become the Favorite meat brand of Indian households.
KFC
With over 1 million views on YouTube itself and comments filled with love and appreciation, this endorsement seems to be the most fun. This endorsement done by Anil Kapoor stands out from every other ad he did. It is a striking ad where the actor is seen wearing an equally striking silver outfit. Funny and quirky dialogues in the KFC advertisement caught people’s attention. Audiences are in awe of the advertisement which ends with his iconic dialogue “Jhakaas”.
With the mainstream goal of spreading health awareness, health ok offers multivitamin food supplements. It has the most perfect combination of stars to endorse it- Anil Kapoor and Ranveer Singh. Both of them are looked upon as powerhouses of Bollywood for the unlimited energy they carry. Having the looks and physique of a 30-year-old while being 65. Anil Kapoor has proved how deeply he encourages fitness and the pathway leading to it. He fits right in this endorsement encouraging people to fulfill their vitamin deficiencies by taking food supplements.
Teachmint
Anil Kapoor Teachmint Ad
Teachmint’s advertisement featuring Anil Kapoor can be called the smoothest and the most beautiful advertisement on tv. In the ad, He’s seen as the principal of a school that uses the software. Teachmint is an educational startup based in Bangalore The tagline of ‘Naye Zamaane Ki Nai Schooling’ focuses on digitalizing the educational ecosystem in India. With popular faces like Anil Kapoor on board, Teachmint is already establishing its position in the educational sector of India. Being a versatile educational software with a versatile actor endorsing it, it surely is winning the hearts of people.
Softovac
Anil Kapoor Softovac Ad
Softovac is a Bowel Regulator Powder, known to treat digestive problems like constipation and indigestion. This product is popular amongst middle-aged people and senior citizens. The brand made a wise choice by letting Anil Kapoor represent it as its target customers belong to the era of Anil Kapoor.
Ariel
Anil Kapoor and Sanjeev Kapoor Ariel Ad
A duo of two Kapoors, one a superhit actor and another a superhit chef, Anil Kapoor, and Sanjeev Kapoor are seen in the series of advertisements for the brand. Ariel- A laundry detergent brand, despite being a global brand, it did a stupendous job establishing its noticeable presence in the Indian market. It has become one of the important brands for Indian households.
Scott Eyewear
Scott eyewear offers a chic range of optical eyewear and sunglasses. In this endorsement, Anil Kapoor is seen tagging along with his daughter Sonam Kapoor both known as fashion icons of Bollywood. This factor makes the advertisement highly glamorous.
Anil Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor Scott Eyewear Ad
Puro Salt
Anil Kapoor Puro Salt Ad
Having Anil Kapoor quote “100% Natural and 100% Kudrati” in the endorsement Puro Salt claims to be India’s 1st healthy salt with no additives or chemicals. Being an uncrowned fitness king himself, Anil Kapoor fits just right in this endorsement.
Renault
Anil Kapoor Renault Ad
For the most successful and versatile actor in Indian cinema that he is, Anil Kapoor naturally becomes the choice of the most powerful brands. This multinational automobile manufacturer has gotten a lot of positive remarks in the automobile industry just because of Kapoor’s presence in its advertisement.
Mastercard
Anil Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor Mastercard Ad
Like many other brands, Mastercard, the ultimate payment processor portrays the most famous Bollywood father-daughter duo. The advertisement aims at showing the parent-child relationship in the most sophisticated and elegant manner and how MasterCard can help fulfill the gaps in the relationship.
Godrej is a brand known for its wide range of products. It is famous as one of the leading hair color brands. Godrej expert hair color is popular for its quality and easy application. Anil Kapoor endorsed the product most elegantly. In the ad, he is seen well clad and very charming, making it a beautifully convincing advertisement.
Anil Kapoor Godrej Expert Ad
Conclusion
Brands endorsed by Anil Kapoor gain instant popularity. His multifaceted acting ability never fails to charm the audience. The actor has been seen doing numerous ads and his fantastic skill to blend perfectly into each of them hasn’t gone unnoticed.
The evergreen star and producer Anil Kapoor needless to say has a solid fan following. Popular for his ever-young look and enigmatic energy he is best known for the value he brings to the brand he endorses.
Needless to say, Anil Kapoor’s ads leave a smile on the viewer’s faces.
FAQs
What is Anil Kapoor’s age?
Anil Kapoor is 65 years old. He was born on 24 December 1956.
Who is the brand ambassador of The Sleep Company?
Anil Kapoor is the brand ambassador of The Sleep Company.
What are the top brands endorsed by Anil Kapoor?
Some of the top brands endorsed by Anil Kapoor are:
Spotify
Cred
The Sleep Company
Malabar Gold and Diamond
Licious
KFC
Health Ok
Teachmint
How much does Anil Kapoor charge for an ad?
Anil Kapoor’s brand endorsement fee is around 55 Lakhs.
Is Anil Kapoor a brand ambassador of Malabar Gold and Diamonds?
Anil Kapoor was Brand Ambassador of Malabar Gold and Diamonds in 2019.
CRED is an Indian-based fintech startup and a Unicorn company. It was founded in the year 2018 and has its headquarters in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The main feature of this platform is letting users pay their credit card bills through the mobile application and providing rewards to the customers.
The company is very well known for its creative commercials which are quite different. As the recent advertisement starring Rahul Dravid went viral, Let’s understand more about Cred’s recent commercial and how it went viral over the internet.
The recent commercial which was rolled out by CRED has captured the limelight. The commercial has achieved what the best celebrities and advertisers couldn’t possibly do. It has left the advertising industry in a shock.
CRED’s New Ad featuring Rahul Dravid
In the recent CRED advertisement, the former captain of the Indian Cricket Team is shown to become violent because of the Bengaluru, Indiranagar traffic. Indiranagar is one of the main places of Bengaluru city and it is widely known for its hours of traffic. It is also the place where the headquarters of CRED has located as well as the neighborhood where Rahul Dravid has spent his childhood.
In the advertisement, we can see that Rahul Dravid loses his cool personality and becomes violent. He takes his cricket bat and breaks the rear view mirror, acts like a maniac and throws coffee. He shouts saying that “Indiranagar ka Gunda” has caught the eyes of the audience.
In the description of the CRED new advertisement, Rahul Dravid says the following. Hi, this is Rahul Dravid writing the description for this video. Sorry, I lost my temper there and I am meditating these days. Well, I am writing this to let you know that CRED truly rewards you every time you pay your credit card bills through Cred. They are good people.
Rahul Dravid is known for his cool nature and personality. The always laughable and cool person losing his temper, shouting, and breaking the rearview mirrors is a brilliant play for his personality. The commercial has left a shock amongst individuals wondering whether Rahul Dravid would lose his cool nature.
The advertisement had managed to garner a million views across the social media platforms and has let a lot of people wondering “Rahul Dravid ko gussa bhi aata hai” (Translation: Does Rahul Dravid even get angry?). The commercial has amused a lot of people certainly the ones who know Rahul Dravid.
The commercial even grasped the attention of the current Indian captain, Virat Kohli, as he tweeted for the video saying that he had never seen this side of Rahul Bhai with an exploding head emoji.
The former test player and Karnataka teammate Dodda Ganesh had brought up the incident when Rahul Dravid had got angry last time. He said it was during the 1998 Ranji trophy Semi Finals against Hyderabad. He tweeted saying that the last time Rahul Dravid shouted like this was from the dressing room of the Karnataka cricket team and he was at the receiver’s end.
— ದೊಡ್ಡ ಗಣೇಶ್ | Dodda Ganesh (@doddaganesha) April 9, 2021
It was the current Indian Captain, Virat Kohli who first shared the CRED new ad and within seconds it became the viral video of 2021. Brands started tweeting about the commercials using it to promote their own brands. Brands such as Dunzo, Zomato, boat, Spotify, OYO, CARS24, Radio city, HDFC bank, Paytm, Pepsi India, Rajasthan Royals, etc. tweeted using the commercial. Here are some of the tweets from the famous brands to promote their own franchise.
Dunzo
Calling all angry gundas of Indiranagar to get out of traffic Jammys, sit Toit at home, and order in some Chakum Chukum. You chill Bob's, we'll be your Sarathi and come Humming to your Corner House with a Shalimar delivery. Stepping out should always be Plan B.
Abhishek Ponia who is an Angel Investor from Mumbai tweeted on his Twitter handle saying that he thinks that Virat Kohli’s tweet sharing the CRED advertisement was a paid engagement. He adds on to this point by laying down reasons such as the CRED ad was not seen anywhere before and it did not even exist on the internet before Virat Kohli’s tweet. He has said that even CRED’s Twitter handle did not post the ad.
Why I think Virat Kohli’s tweet sharing the CRED ad film was a paid engagement … (& not organic):
He also added on saying that Virat Kohli normally doesn’t tweet during the matchday as the day the video was released was the first IPL match between RCB and MI. He said that most of Virat Kohli’s tweets were after the match or on non-match days. He would rarely post during the match day and it would be about match prep talks and deciding to share something different all of a sudden raises doubts.
CRED is known for spending heavily on cricket. We can’t expect it to be a mere coincidence that the ad was released on the same day when Virat Kohli had his first match of the IPL 2021. What do you think about this? We would love to know your opinion. Do share your comments in the comments section below. Until then have a good time reading articles on Startuptalky. Happy Reading.
Nitin Konde
