Why small-ticket lending startups are seeing a wave of CFO exits
India’s small-ticket digital lending space is facing more than just regulatory pressure—it’s seeing an exodus of finance chiefs. Over the past four months, at least three chief financial officers (CFO) have exited fintechs operating in the industry.
The exits come even as several of these firms are still in recovery mode, navigating valuation markdowns, tighter scrutiny from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and a shift in investor sentiment away from high-growth, high-risk lending plays.
“Regulatory tightening by the RBI has put added pressure on financial strategy and compliance. Second, the shift from growth to profitability has made the CFO’s role more demanding. Third, many boards are pushing for governance resets to restore investor trust,” said Rohit Srivastava, senior partner at executive search and advisory firm Longhouse.
The RBI has introduced a series of regulatory tightening measures over the last two to three years. The digital lending guidelines of 2022 mandated greater disclosures and restrictions on first-loss default guarantee models, among other tightening measures.
In the larger fintech ecosystem, “…some CFOs have left to start their own ventures. In many cases, companies are promoting internal candidates or moving executives across group companies to fill CFO roles. And increasingly, founders—especially those with finance backgrounds—are taking over CFO responsibilities themselves,” Srivastava added.
According to Longhouse data, close to a dozen CFO transitions have taken place across fintechs—Zerodha, Paytm, and Paisabazaar—since 2023 with the average tenure at 3.5 years. The recent exits in lending have hit much lower than this average, at 1.3 years. CFOs at Lendingkart, Balance Hero and Cashe, all players offering quick, unsecured credit, have stepped down between December and March, Mint has learnt.
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