IPO-bound BharatPe names Aparna Kuppuswamy as chief risk officer

Aparna Kuppuswamy was earlier chief risk officer at SBI Cards for more than 14 years, where she led a number of key projects.

“We are happy to share the appointment of Aparna Kuppuswamy as the Chief Risk Officer, BharatPe Group. A seasoned leader with close to 3 decades of experience, Aparna will be leading the risk portfolio across the BharatPe Group of companies, including the merchant and consumer businesses,” the company said in a post on LinkedIn.

Amit Jain, the current Chief Risk Officer at BharatPe, will work closely with Kuppuswamy on merchant collections and underwriting.

The ex-SBI Cards senior executive will lead the risk portfolio across the BharatPe Group of firms, including the merchant and consumer businesses. Kuppuswamy will be working closely with the CFO and interim CEO, Nalin Negi, to further build a robust lending vertical at the fintech unicorn, the company said in a statement.

Before SBI Cards, Kuppuswamy was Director, Credit Policy, at Ameriprise Financial and has also held leadership roles at ABN AMRO Bank and Bank of America. Aparna is a Masters in Finance & Control from the University of Delhi.

Commenting on the appointment, Negi said, “Aparna with her in-depth understanding of all facets of risk strategy, credit policy and portfolio management, as well as extensive industry and product knowledge, will play a vital role in the next phase of our growth story as well as helping us in becoming IPO ready. Additionally, Aparna’s understanding of the consumer side of financial services will help us build cutting-edge products that are not only relevant, but also are risk aversive.”

Kuppuswamy stated, “I am really excited to be a part of the promising organization and spearhead the risk and credit strategy for the BharatPe Group of companies. I look forward to working with the team to build new products, that will make a huge impact on millions of unbanked and underserved businesses and play a key role in making India a truly Digital economy.”