Fintech startup Chqbook gets a cheque from Harsha Bhogle; AccioJob raises fresh funding

Gurugram-based fintech startup Chqbook has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle, the company said in a press statement.

Chqbook is a curated marketplace for personalised financial services and allows customers to explore, compare and buy products such as personal loans, home loans and credit cards.

It uses a proprietary artificial intelligence tool to offer instant approvals on its platform, and makes personalised recommendations of products to its customers based on their demographic information and financial fitness. The company claims to have over 50 credit cards and 20 business loan, personal loan and home loan providers listed on its platform.

“With 40% of the population having no association with any bank and more than 80% of the transactions carried out through cash, financial services are largely under-penetrated in India. This under-penetration combined with the rapidly growing youth demographics and rising adoption of smart phones, present a huge opportunity for Chqbook,” Bhogle said.

An IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, Bhogle began his commentating career with the All India Radio. He has also hosted a number of television programmes.
Chqbook was founded by Vipul Shamra and Rajat Kumar in June 2016. While Sharma earlier worked at BankBazaar and IndusInd Bank, Kumar previously founded TheMoneyEstate.com and worked at IndusInd Bank.

“Harsha is widely acknowledged to be the voice of cricket. Our first conversation with Harsha gave us the confidence that we both share the same vision about making India financially fitter,” Sharma said.

The startup had previously raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Startup Buddy and a clutch of individual investors in October 2017.

AccioJob gets funding

Student-focussed placement services startup Acciojob has raised Rs 1.25 crore (around $180,000 at current exchange rates) in a fresh round of funding led by Mehta Ventures, a family office.

Apart from Hershel Mehta, principal of Mehta Ventures and cousin of veteran angel investor Sanjay Mehta, the round also included participation from existing investor and Silicon Valley-based accelerator Y Combinator.

Founded by graduates of the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi, AccioJob aims to be a one-stop placement solution for students, colleges and companies by offering a marketplace for jobs.

“We aim to create a network of colleges and become the central placement platform for companies to hire from campuses, taking this process online," said AccioJob chief executive Yashwardhan Burad.

The Gurugram-based company claims the number of students hired by its partner companies has been growing at 100% month-on-month for the last three months.

“The concept of students creating robust profiles on their platform is very appealing," said Hershel Mehta. “AccioJob can become like an Amazon marketplace for interns and first-time job seekers. The vastness and complexity of India's education system creates a real problem for both universities and corporations looking to hire.”

AccioJob intends to get 1,000 colleges on board its platform in the next two years.

The market size currently is $900 million and is growing at about 15% annually, AccioJob added.