The co-founders of Indian buy now, pay later (BNPL) start-up ZestMoney, including CEO Lizzie Chapman, CTO Ashish Anantharaman, and CFO/COO Priya Sharma, have stepped down from their roles following a failed acquisition by PhonePe. A new leadership team has been appointed to take over the company.
Facts
- ZestMoney’s co-founders, including CEO Lizzie Chapman, CTO Ashish Anantharaman, and CFO/COO Priya Sharma, have stepped down from their roles.
- The founders made the decision after PhonePe called off its proposed acquisition of ZestMoney.
- Lizzie Chapman announced the news in a LinkedIn post, stating that the founders have decided to step back from their day-to-day operating roles but will remain significant shareholders.
- A new leadership team has been appointed, including Mohit Chhajer as vice president of finance and financial operations, Mandar Satpute as chief banking officer, and Abhishek Sharma as SVP of growth.
- The new leadership team has been part of ZestMoney’s journey for a long time and contributed to building and scaling the company.
- ZestMoney, founded in 2015, offers buy now, pay later services to Indian consumers, allowing them to make purchases and repay in multiple installments.
- PhonePe’s decision to walk away from the acquisition reportedly stemmed from concerns over ZestMoney’s business model, debt liability, market environment, valuation disagreement, and increased scrutiny of digital lending companies in India.
- ZestMoney had previously raised funds at a valuation of $450 million but has been struggling to secure new capital recently.
