B2B fintech-focused SaaS unicorn Perfios has appointed former State Bank of India deputy MD Nitin Chugh as its group CEO and MD.
In a statement, the unicorn said its core business will continue to be led by Sabyasachi Goswami, who has been serving as the CEO since 2022, while Chugh will oversee the broader Perfios Group, which includes acquired entities such as Clari5, CreditNirvana, and IHX.
Chugh brings extensive experience in the banking industry. He served as the deputy MD and head of digital banking and transformation at SBI until March 2, 2026. Prior to that, he was the CEO of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank and previously held the role of group head of digital banking at HDFC Bank.
“… the momentum we are building around AI, with rapidly evolving capabilities across credit decisioning, fraud prevention, risk management, healthcare claims automation, collections, and debt resolution… has the potential to play a pivotal role in expanding access to formal finance for underserved segments while improving the speed and quality of financial decisions,” Chugh said on his appointment.
The leadership change comes amid an aggressive expansion phase of the Bengaluru-based startup as it looks to strengthen its end-to-end BFSI technology stack.
In 2025, Perfios acquired three startups as part of this strategy. In February, it acquired banking financial fraud management platform Clari5, which was followed by the acquisition of CreditNirvana – an AI-driven debt management and collections startup – in March 2025. Later in April, Perfios acquired healthcare information exchange platform IHX.
Founded in 2008 by V R Govindarajan and Debasish Chakraborty, Perfios provides software solutions to financial institutions for credit decisioning, analytics, onboarding automation, and due diligence.
It acts as an AI-driven middleware platform that helps automate the entire lifecycle of a financial transaction – from customer onboarding to credit decisioning.
The startup serves over 1,000 financial institutions globally and acts as a digital bridge between raw financial data and lender decision-making systems.
Perfios claims to process over 8.2 Bn data points annually, enabling faster credit access and improved financial decision-making. Its platform includes more than 75 products and over 500 APIs.
The startup entered the unicorn club in March 2024 after raising $80 Mn from Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan’s Teachers’ Venture Growth arm. Overall, it has raised over $430 Mn to date from investors like Kedaara Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Warburg Pincus, among others.
In 2024, the startup was also said to be looking to go public. However, there have been no further updates on its IPO plans.
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