Indian challenger bank Cube preps for launch
India-based challenger bank Cube has moved into beta stage two as it readies for launch.
Will it be another “textbook journey”?
Cube is the brainchild of Satyen Kothari, who was the founder, owner and MD of Citrus Pay from 2011 to 2015. He sold it to PayU in 2016 for $130 million. With no modesty whatsoever he says it was a “textbook journey”.
In his latest venture, Kothari has created Cube. It’s pitched as “your private banker” and will act as a wealth and money manager in India.
Kothari says beta two will offer “simpler” onboarding, new asset classes, a “simplified” money manager and new UX and UI.
Cube is rolling out its beta two invitations in waves – and will naturally be seeking feedback as it looks to progress.
Like many other new fintech firms around the world, Cube will look after expenses and budgeting; and offer guidance on investing in equity and international mutual funds.
There is no exact official launch date yet as it is building its bank, products and team. Kothari is calling for marketing and customer care staff – and asks for “excellent communication skills”. (Almost everyone says that.)
According to its site, its current team comprises individuals from firms such as Apple, Disney, IBM and HSBC.
Cube says it will integrate with the India Stack for know your customer (KYC) operations. In addition, it will integrate with BillDesk, Yes Bank and the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) to let users move money and pay bills.
Cube is built on Amazon Web Services (AWS) and is an AMFI-registered mutual funds distributor. The latter being the Association of Mutual Funds in India.
This new bank should not be confused with regtech firm Cube, which was founded in 2011. The latter has offices in New York, London and Melbourne.
