Speaking at the Bharat Inclusion Summit, CRED founder Kunal Shah made a compelling case for building trust-driven fintech products, urging founders to think long-term, avoid shortcuts, and prioritise consumer wellbeing.
Shah, known for founding FreeCharge and now helming CRED, began on a self-deprecating note, calling himself “probably the most under-qualified person in the room.” Yet, with over a decade in the startup space before the term ‘fintech’ even existed he offered a grounded view of how the ecosystem has evolved.
According to him, fintech at its core isn’t about technology, but trust. “If you're building in fintech, you're in the business of trust,” he stressed. “As fraud rates go down, more people adopt UPI. But if trust breaks, adoption collapses. There’s no such thing as ‘I trust a little bit’ trust is binary.”
He warned early-stage founders against deferring trust-building, saying it’s often neglected in the scramble for product-market fit. “Trust is like a bank account, you deposit one rupee at a time, but lose it all instantly with one bad choice.”
One core value at CRED, he shared, is simple yet non-negotiable: “We don’t launch a product we wouldn’t offer to our friends or family.” He criticised the industry’s temptation to exploit consumer vulnerabilities for short-term gain, arguing that such choices erode integrity, culture, and long-term value.
Shah broke down trust into four components competence, consistency, integrity, and benevolence. “Even the absence of kindness can trigger distrust,” he said, adding that leadership integrity must first be visible within the company before it can be projected outward.
Additionally, he pointed out a cultural blind spot in India: a lack of value for time. “Digital doesn't always mean efficient,” Shah remarked, explaining that despite widespread tech adoption, tools often aren't used productively. “The biggest employer in the world is inefficiency,” he quipped.
Citing initiatives like the CRED Foundation, which focuses on financial literacy, he emphasized the importance of values-led action. “If your business values aren’t clearly defined, everyone in the team interprets them differently,” he warned.
Closing his remarks, Shah spotlighted India’s gender gap in financial inclusion and stressed the need to educate younger generations. “There’s a Chief Technology Officer in every home aged 8 to 20. Soon, they’ll be the Chief Procurement Officers. Let’s start with them.”
