CRED founder Kunal Shah joins the board of Pine Labs

He joins a marquee set of investors, advisors, and other visionary board members.

Pine Labs, one of Asia’s leading merchant commerce platforms, today announced the appointment of Kunal Shah, founder, CRED, to the company’s board.

Kunal is an entrepreneur, investor, and a pioneer of India’s fintech ecosystem. CRED, which he founded in 2018, is a high-trust community of some of India’s most creditworthy individuals, financial institutions, and brands.

Commenting on the appointment, B. Amrish Rau, CEO, Pine Labs, said, “We are excited to welcome Kunal to our board. He joins a marquee set of investors, advisors, and other visionary board members who are all committed to take Pine Labs to newer heights. Kunal’s deep understanding of the consumer business will be invaluable to us as we explore new opportunities and step into our next phase of growth.”

Kunal is an advocate of entrepreneurship in India, with nearly 100 investments across financial services, consumer, and technology. An ardent believer in the role of financial well-being in driving progress, Kunal actively promotes and participates in financial literacy, wealth-creation, and female workforce participation initiatives in India and around the world. He has been an advisor to the board of Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd (Times of India), the Chairman of the Internet and Mobile Association of India and an advisor to Sequoia Capital India. Before CRED, Kunal founded Freecharge and led it to the largest internet exit of its time in 2015.

“The pandemic has catalysed behaviour change among consumers, merchants, and institutions that will drive the fintech sector. Shaping this transformation for the benefit of all stakeholders is a collective responsibility. Pine Labs is a player in digital payments adoption and joining its board is an opportunity to contribute to the ecosystem,” said Kunal Shah, Founder, CRED.

Pine Labs is expanding its footprint in international markets with its Buy Now Pay Later offering, provides gift card and stored value solutions through its subsidiary Qwikcilver and has made strategic investment in the consumer side of the business with the acquisition of Fave in April 2021. The company also recently announced a total round size of USD 600m with the entry of global investors.