Former BharatPe Managing Director and co-founder Ashneer Grover has launched a new fintech platform called Fund My Staff. The platform is built by Third Unicorn Private Limited, a startup founded by Grover in 2022 along with Madhuri Jain Grover and Aseem Ghavri.
Fund My Staff is designed to help employees get personal loans through their employers. It mainly targets people who have little or no credit history and often find it difficult to get loans from banks or lending apps during financial emergencies.
The platform aims to make workplace borrowing more organised by offering a formal lending process instead of employees asking their employers directly for money.
How Fund My Staff Works
The process is simple for both employers and employees. Companies first sign up on the platform and add their employees. Employers can also decide the maximum loan amount that each employee can apply for.
When an employee needs money, they can send a loan request to their employer through the app. The employer checks the request and decides whether to approve it.
Once the request is approved, the employer acts as a guarantor for the loan. This helps the employee qualify for the loan by using the employer’s stronger financial profile. However, the employer does not pay the loan amount from their own pocket.
After approval, the loan amount is transferred directly to the employee’s bank account, usually within a few minutes.
Employees repay the loan through automatic monthly EMIs using a UPI mandate. They can choose repayment periods of 3, 6, 9 or 12 months, depending on what suits them best.
The platform is expected to reduce the discomfort of employees asking their bosses for personal loans while giving them a structured and professional way to borrow money when needed.
Interest Rates, KYC and RBI Rules
Fund My Staff offers loans with an Annual Percentage Rate (APR) between 12% and 20%, depending on the borrower’s profile and loan terms. The company also says it does not charge any processing fee.
For example, if someone takes a loan of Rs. 1 lakh for 12 months at an interest rate of 12%, the monthly EMI would be around Rs. 8,333.
To apply for a loan, users must complete a digital KYC process using their Aadhaar and PAN details.
The platform also uses the Account Aggregator system to verify a user’s income and financial information after getting their permission. According to the company, customer data is not sold to third parties.
Fund My Staff works as a Lending Service Provider (LSP) under the Reserve Bank of India’s digital lending guidelines. The loans are not given by Fund My Staff itself. They are approved and disbursed by its RBI-registered NBFC partner, Ash Grove Capital Private Limited.
This setup helps the platform follow RBI rules while making the loan process quick and fully digital.
Third Unicorn Adds Another Fintech Product
Fund My Staff is the third major product launched by Third Unicorn.
Earlier, the company launched CrickPe, a fantasy cricket platform that aimed to compete with popular fantasy sports apps. However, the platform was shut down in early 2024.
Later, Third Unicorn introduced ZeroPe, a healthcare lending platform that offers pre-approved medical loans of up to Rs. 5 lakh through its lending partner. The service helps people pay for medical expenses without going through a long loan approval process.
With Fund My Staff, the company is now focusing on workplace lending. The platform aims to help employees who need quick financial support but do not have a strong credit history.
As digital lending continues to grow in India, employer-backed loan platforms like Fund My Staff could become another option for salaried employees looking for quick and easy access to emergency funds through a regulated lending system.