In a major vote of confidence in India’s emerging cross-border fintech ecosystem, Belong, a fintech platform tailored exclusively for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), has raised $5 million in seed funding. The round was led by Elevation Capital and saw participation from Relentless Ventures, along with marquee angels including Abhiraj Singh Bahl and Varun Khaitan (Urban Company), Akshant Goyal (Zomato), Varun Alagh (Mamaearth), Vineet Sethi (PayU), and Aditya Sharma (McKinsey).
Launched in 2024 by Ankur Choudhary, Ayush Singh, and Sai Sankar M, Belong aims to simplify wealth creation for NRIs—starting with a tax-free, USD-denominated fixed deposit (FD) product built in collaboration with Indian banks operating at GIFT City.
What sets Belong apart?
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Tax-free returns in India
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Rupee depreciation protection
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Doorstep KYC for NRIs
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Easy international repatriation
“We’re building a modern financial operating system for NRIs. GIFT City’s regulatory sandbox has allowed us to innovate with confidence,” said Ankur Choudhary, Co-founder & CEO of Belong.
The platform has already bagged key licences—PSP and broker-dealer approvals from IFSCA—and is readying to roll out a broader financial suite: mutual funds, Indian and US equities, insurance, and cards, all compliant with the GIFT City framework.
Belong has also launched a suite of intuitive tools designed with NRIs in mind:
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FD rates explorer
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GIFT Nifty tracker
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Rupee-dollar monitor
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Residential status calculator
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Upcoming NRI tax filing service
As the cross-border fintech race heats up—just last month, Aspora raised $53M in the same space—Belong is carving a differentiated niche by blending regulatory clarity, customer-first design, and regional market focus across Gulf, UK, and US regions.
This seed round gives Belong the capital muscle to scale product, deepen tech, and expand globally—all while staying laser-focused on its mission: to help NRIs belong, financially.
-by Muskan Dengra
