Startup and SME lender IntelleGrow names Nikesh Kumar Sinha as CEO

Sinha joins IntelleGrow from Axis Bank, where he was Head of the Medium Enterprises Group

IntelleGrow, an Aavishkaar Intellecap Group company that specialises in offering cash flow based loans to SMEs and early-stage enterprises in India, announced the appointment of Nikesh Kumar Sinha as Chief Executive Officer. 

Sinha joins IntelleGrow from Axis Bank where he was the Head of the Medium Enterprises Group. 

Sinha brings 21 years of experience in banking and finance. As IntelleGrow transitions from an early-stage institution to prepare for growth, Sinha’s experience would be useful in guiding its growth and scale. IntelleGrow offers SMEs loans starting from Rs 5 million ($75,000) to Rs 100 million ($1.25 million). Its target customers include SMEs, fintech companies, early stage start-ups (venture debt) and small NBFCs including Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs).

Elaborating on his vision for IntelleGrow, Sinha said, “I have carefully seen the evolution of the MSME space in India and I am convinced that Non-Banking Finance Companies that can align technology to finance have an exceptional potential to create significant value for their stakeholders and achieve scale. At IntelleGrow we have building blocks to achieve this strategy and my vision is to back IntelleGrow with a strong technology bias and build a more granular book with smaller loans.” 

Welcoming Sinha, Vineet Rai, Chairman, IntelleGrow and Founder, Aavishkaar-Intellecap Group, said, “Nikesh brings a fresh perspective to the vision of IntelleGrow and I am confident that we have found the right long term leader for the organization.”

Sinha has been a career banker with 21 years of experience. He is a Mathematics graduate from St Xavier’s College, Kolkata and his interest in the environment earned him a post-graduate degree in Forest Management from IIFM, Bhopal. Simha was one of the early joinees at Axis Bank and completed over 20 years of service with the bank. Some of his roles at Axis Bank include a stint as Deputy CEO of the Singapore Operation.