Kunal Shah is the founder of fintech unicorn CRED and one of the most well-known names in the Indian start-up circles.
In 2010, he started a fintech company called FreeCharge which was acquired by ecommerce giant Snapdeal for a whopping $450 million in 2015.
As an angel investor, Kunal Shah has put money in more than 200 companies including the likes of Razorpay, Unacademy, Slice, Mensa Brands, Spinny, and more.
In an 'Ask-Me-Anything' session on Instagram on Sunday, Kunal Shah addressed concerns around CRED’s profitability and the salary he was drawing.
In the session, Kunal Shah said that he believes he shouldn’t get a good salary till CRED becomes profitable.
He also revealed that his salary was just Rs 15,000 and he was able to survive on this amount because he had made a windfall with the sale of FreeCharge.
Kunal Shah also defended CRED making losses. Answering one of the questions, he said tech companies require investments to build large distribution and engagement channels.
He suggested that the startup ecosystem in India is in early stages. He said that it doesn’t fully understand venture-funding and therefore loss-making companies will continue to be mocked.
In the end he said that 90% of the funded companies may die as they may fail to make profits. However, mocking risk-takers will only encourage government jobs-seeking mindset.