People · Financial Services
Setu co-founder Nikhil Kumar steps down
By Startup Enthusiast ·
- Date
- Company
- Setu
- What it does
- Fintech infrastructure startup
- Kind
- People
- Based in
- Bengaluru
- Founded
- 2018
- Sector
- Financial Services
What they do
Setu provides API infrastructure for bill payments and digital services
What happened
Co-founder Nikhil Kumar leaves after nearly eight years at the firm
Why it matters
He departs four years after Pine Labs acquired the Bengaluru-based company
The details
- Setu co-founder Nikhil Kumar has stepped down from day-to-day operations.
- The announcement was made via a LinkedIn post on 3 June 2026.
- Kumar departs after a nearly eight-year stint with the fintech startup.
- His departure occurs four years after Pine Labs acquired Setu in June 2022.
- Kumar stated that his next plans are currently undisclosed.
- Setu operates as a subsidiary of the payments giant Pine Labs.
- The company provides API infrastructure for various financial services.
- New leadership includes CTO Prashanth Nimmagada and CPO Vijeth Pandit.
The bigger picture
- Kumar co-founded Setu with Sahil Kini in 2018.
- He previously co-founded Voyce which was acquired by Exotel in 2015.
- The exit marks a significant leadership change for the Bengaluru-based firm.
- Pine Labs acquired Setu in June 2022 to expand into financial infrastructure and digital payments.
About the business
- Setu is a Bengaluru-based fintech infrastructure startup.
- It provides APIs for bill payments, UPI, KYC verification, and digital signatures.
- The platform also supports savings and credit products for businesses.
- It operates as a licensed account aggregator via Agya Technologies.
- RBI licenses Setu for consent-based financial data sharing.
- The company launched Sesame in 2024, an LLM for banking.
- Sesame is designed specifically for the BFSI sector.
- Setu has raised more than $18 million to date.
- Investors include Lightspeed, Falcon Edge, and Alpha Wave Global.
What happens next
- Kumar's next career plans remain undisclosed at this time.
Investors
- Lightspeed (investor)
- Falcon Edge (investor)
- Alpha Wave Global (investor)
Founders
- Nikhil Kumar, co-founder
- Sahil Kini, co-founder
Other articles talking about it
Same day
- Kuku FM parent files confidentially for IPO4 June 2026 · IPO · ₹3,500 crore
- TrueFan AI raises $10 million in Series A funding round4 June 2026 · Funding · $10 Mn
- Zerodha removes account maintenance fees and refunds transfer costs4 June 2026 · Policy
- kAIgentic raises $10 million from SMBC Group4 June 2026 · Funding · $10 Mn
- Meesho and BSE launch Project Shikhar for seller listings4 June 2026 · Partnership
- Raise launches Gen Z-focused investment app Millions4 June 2026 · Launch