Former BharatPe MD Ashneer Grover once again finds himself in a controversy - this time allegations from across the border that he copied the idea for his recent lending tech platform, ZeroPe.
In a recent post shared on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, one user named Arti Singh, who identifies herself as a journalist covering fintech, has brought attention to the controversy surrounding ZeroPe.
On her X account, on Thursday, April 18, Singh shared a post that delves into the allegations raised against Grover and the similarities between ZeroPe and a startup concept pitched by two entrepreneurs from Pakistan.
In her X bio, Arti Singh, identifies herself as a journalist covering fintech and formerly worked with prominent publications such as Livemint, MorningContext, ETPrime_com, Vccircle, and Firstpost, as well as a "foodie".
Starting her post, Singh wrote, “Former BharatPe MD Ashneer Grover’s love for the word 'Dhanda' instead of the English word ‘Business’ has not only found admirers in India but across the borders too.” This seemingly has now become the center of controversy as two young entrepreneurs from Pakistan allege that Grover has adopted their startup idea for his latest venture.
As mentioned in Singh's post, the two Pakistani entrepreneurs, Hassan Askari (a 22-year-old Computer Science graduate) and Kumail Bukhari (an 18-year-old school dropout, also a big fan of Indian entrepreneurs such as Ashneer Grover, Oyo founder Ritesh Agarwal, and Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath), claim that Grover launched a venture strikingly similar to their health-fintech startup, 'Asaniyan', after they pitched the idea to him through a cold message on WhatsApp in July 2023.
Singh’s post further adds, Bukhari expressed his disappointment, stating, "I got Ashneer Grover's number from a fellow entrepreneur friend. I thought Ashneer could come onboard as an advisor. Despite the strained relations between India and Pakistan, I was hopeful. Ashneer's previous fintech ventures impressed me, especially his straightforward approach. When Shark Tank India Season 1 aired, many of us saw Ashneer as a go-to person."
“'So, I sent him a cold message sharing my idea and business model, thinking that he might just get interested reading this,' he adds. 'He read my message as there is a blue tick. He never replied. Now, I see him launching ‘ZeroPe’, which is very similar to our idea.,” added Singh’s X post.
According to Singh’s X post, the WhatsApp message was sent on July 27, 2023, highlighted the concept of Asaniyan, a company partnering with banks to offer interest-free loans to employees of partner organizations. The message expressed the business model's potential success, featuring significant demand for such loans in the Indian healthcare market. Despite the outreach, Grover didn't reply to a query sent over WhatsApp.
ZeroPe, as mentioned in Singh's X post, doesn’t claim to partner with organisations and appears to function more as a direct-to-consumer (D2C) app.
In response to concerns about Grover possibly not copying their idea, Bukhari against blindly trusting established entrepreneurs with innovative concepts. "Ashneer is a very powerful person and he can prove many things. I am not trying to make allegations against him; my point is to create awareness among young entrepreneurs," he stated, added Singh’s post.
Despite the setback, Bukhari and Askari find solace in seeing Grover's adoption of their idea as validation of Asaniyan’s potential, as mentioned in the post. "Insaan hi toh galtiyaan karta hai," Bukhari remarked, hinting at their determination to persevere despite the setback.
Grover's entrepreneurial journey has been under scrutiny since his departure from BharatPe. Having launched 'CrickPe', a cricket fantasy platform, under Third Unicorn Pvt Ltd in February 2023, Grover's ventures have been closely followed by both admirers and critics alike, as highlighted in Singh's post.
What is ZeroPe?
ZeroPe |
ZeroPe is a new fintech app launched by Ashneer Grover and Aseem Ghavri, co-founders of BharatPe, in partnership with Delhi-based non-banking financial corporation (NBFC) Mukut Finvest.
The app specialises in medical bill payments and offers financing options up to Rs 5 lakh for medical expenses, which can be availed only at the company’s partner hospitals. The app aims to simplify the loan process and medical payments, and it is the second venture under Third Unicorn, which also launched the fantasy cricket app CrickPe last year. The app has been developed by Third Unicorn, a company established by Grover and Ghavri after the former departed from CrickPe.
