Indian fintech unicorn Cred grows revenue 3.5x in FYE 2023

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Cred, an India-based credit card rewards platform, recorded approximately US$178.3 million in revenue for the year ended March 31, 2023, a 3.5x growth compared to the previous financial year.

The company said that this was driven by a broader mix of products, which increased total payment value by 77% to US$53 billion. Monthly transacting users also grew by over 58%.

While the fintech unicorn remained unprofitable, losses decreased by 10% to US$125.8 million compared to the previous year. The company attributed this result to lower costs of acquisition, which decreased 80% compared to five years ago.

Marketing expenses also declined by 27% year on year to US$8.6 million. However, employee benefit expenses increased, driven by ESOP costs that grew to about US$36.1 million as the firm said that it would prioritize “talent density.”

“Five years since launch, we believe that Cred – and prudent financial behavior – are becoming a habit for the top 1%,” said Kunal Shah, the firm’s founder and CEO, in a statement.

Cred is a members-only payment app that rewards users who clear their credit card bills on time with exclusive deals and experiences from partner brands.

The firm says that it is the fourth largest app by value on India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a real-time payment system that facilitates interbank peer-to-peer and person-to-merchant transactions. The company started facilitating peer-to-peer UPI transactions earlier this year, along with a foray into the buy now, pay later sector.

Cred last secured funding in June 2022, raising US$140 million in a series F round led by Singapore’s GIC. Its other backers include Tiger Global and Peak XV.

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