Kissht co-founders move on to launch new venture, get 3one4 Capital’s backing

Rezolv co-founders Karan Mehta and Sonali Jindal.

Kissht chief technology officer Karan Mehta and chief operating officer Sonali Jindal, two of the four co-founders of the digital lending platform, have quit the positions to start Rezolv, an AI-powered debt resolution platform for banks and non-banking financial companies (NBFCs),  following a rising trend of entrepreneurs stepping away to build new ventures.

"We launched Rezolv in October. The idea had been in the making for months," Mehta said in a phone interview with Moneycontrol on March 3. Jindal, too, joined the interaction.

The startup, which went live with its first two NBFC clients in January, has also secured a $3.5 million seed round led by 3one4 Capital.

"Sonali and Karan’s sharp execution and deep understanding of the space make them the ideal team to drive this transformation, and we’re excited to partner with them as they scale Rezolv," Akshay Sharma, VP, Investments, 3one4 Capital, said in response to Moneycontrol queries

Mumbai-headquartered Rezolv has entered a rapidly growing debt-resolution market, with players such as Credgenics, Spocto, and Creditas catering to lenders, while firms like Freed focus on borrowers.

The startup launches at a time when many banks and NBFCs are seeing a rise in defaults, particularly in the unsecured segment, and are seeking cost-efficient solutions to manage financial stability.

Also read: Banks' Q3FY25 Outlook: Brokerages see weak earnings amidst slow loan growth, pressure on NIMs

Meanwhile, Kissht’s other co-founders, Ranvir Singh and Krishnan Vishwanathan, continue to lead the company. Founded in 2015, the fintech firm, backed by investors like Vertex Growth, Brunie Investment Agency, Venture East, Sistema and Endiya, offers loans via in-house NBFC and also runs a financial consumer app Ring.

Inside Rezolv: Making debt resolution smart

Unlike competitors that offer both software and services, including call centres and field agents, Rezolv is a pure software and analytics platform.

"Most players operate a hybrid model, which pulls leadership in different directions and affects product quality. We are solely focused on building best-in-class software," Mehta said.

Operating with a team of 40, Rezolv aims to streamline the entire debt collection process —digital communication, early reminders, Interactive voice response calls, field visits, legal workflows, and analytics — so that lenders can build more efficient collection systems in compliance with their policies.

"For example, if a lender allows only one customer call a day, our system ensures no additional calls are made," Jindal said.

"Right now, lenders juggle multiple tools for collections, legal cases, and customer interactions and the system is quite broken. We bring it all under one roof, most importantly with AI-driven data analytics of customer behaviour, pattern, and interaction to make the recovery process better,” she added.

Rezolv’s real-time AI auditing of customer interactions with agents or the system is analysed live to flag potential violations of lender policies.

“We see Rezolv leading the transformation of debt- collection platforms for financial institutions on the back of tailwinds such as tackling rising collection costs for FIs, the limitations of legacy solutions, and the growing demand for comprehensive, full-stack platforms," Sharma said.

Also read: Disbursement an expense, collection is revenue: Fintech founders decode realities of SME lending

Early warning score to predict defaults

A major feature of Rezolv is its AI-powered early warning score that helps lenders identify potential defaulters before they miss a payment.

"Most collection efforts start after a borrower has already defaulted. We use AI to predict who is at risk even before that happens," Mehta said.

The unified debt collections platform analyses multiple data points such as payment history, spending patterns and behavioural signals from borrower interactions.

"If a borrower suddenly stops responding to messages or delays opening a payment reminder, that’s a strong indicator of future default. Our system flags such accounts early so lenders can intervene proactively," he said.

By identifying high-risk customers earlier, lenders can implement softer interventions — such as personalised nudges, payment plan restructuring, or alternative repayment options — before escalating to aggressive collection measures. "The earlier the intervention, the higher the chances of recovery with minimal friction," Jindal said.

Where AI fits in

The startup claims to leverage AI to segment borrowers based on behaviour and payment intent, optimising recovery strategies while minimising costs.

"We track every interaction — whether a message is read, a link is clicked, or a call is answered — so lenders can categorise customers efficiently," Jindal said.

The system then dynamically adjusts engagement strategies in real time. "Some customers respond to digital nudges; others need a voice bot instead of a live agent. Our system makes those decisions automatically," she said.

One of Rezolv’s key products, Strategy Builder, allows lenders to design and automate workflows, with AI-driven optimisations improving outcomes within one to three months.

"Most lenders focus only on resolution rates —typically 86-89 percent recovery but they often overspend chasing the last 1 percent, sometimes paying Rs 200 to recover Rs 100. Our platform helps them optimise efforts," Mehta said.

Rezolv also helps lenders handle different types of defaulters intelligently.

"We identify ‘forgetful customers’— those who miss payments but have no intention of defaulting. Instead of sending aggressive reminders, we use softer messages or even jokes to nudge them," Mehta said. "For customers who are unresponsive, we escalate collections to field agents sooner rather than wasting time on ineffective phone calls."

The startup aims to become the industry standard by offering a unified platform that integrates digital communication, field collections, legal workflows, and analytics.

"Right now, collections teams work with fragmented systems—separate platforms for digital communication, field collections, and legal cases. We bring all of this together, allowing lenders to build dynamic, AI-driven collection strategies," Jindal said.

The trend 

The founder duo join a growing list of startup operators launching new ventures.

Recently, Dhaval Shah and Dharmil Sheth, co-founders of API Holdings (PharmEasy), stepped back to start a new consumer venture, first reported by Moneycontrol, while upGrad's Mayank Kumar is venturing into blue-collar and global talent mobility space.

Meanwhile, Dunzo’s last standing co-founder Kabeer Biswas has also moved on to new roles.