Fintech startup Belong, which is developing a financial platform targeted at non-resident Indians (NRIs), has secured $5 million in a funding round led by Elevation Capital as it begins operations focused on retail investment offerings through Gift City.

The funding round also included contributions from Relentless Ventures and various angel investors, such as Abhiraj Singh Bahl and Varun Khaitan (co-founders of Urban Company), Akshant Goyal (CFO of Zomato), Varun Alagh (co-founder of Mamaearth), Vineet Sethi (senior vice president at PayU), and Aditya Sharma (partner at McKinsey).

“Belong plans to use the capital to acquire regulatory licences, build out its product suite, and invest in marketing and geographic expansion,” says cofounder and CEO Ankur Choudhary.

Established in 2024, Belong has initiated its operations with a USD fixed deposit product developed in collaboration with Indian banks located at Gift City. Its mission is to tackle the enduring challenges that NRIs encounter when attempting to save and invest in India, such as intricate KYC procedures, elevated currency conversion expenses, taxing complexities, and burdensome repatriation processes.

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“For Indians living in the country, everything has transitioned to digital, and there are numerous financial products. For NRIs, however, the situation is quite different, even though they represent a high-value segment from an investment standpoint. Therefore, we identified a significant gap in the market,” Ankur explains.

Belong’s USD fixed deposit product provides tax-exempt returns in India, safeguards against rupee depreciation, streamlined repatriation, and convenient KYC processes at home.

The startup has obtained a Payment Services Provider (PSP) license and a broker-dealer license from the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) and intends to introduce more offerings, including mutual funds, equities from both India and the US, insurance products, and financial cards, all of which will be structured in accordance with Gift City’s regulations.

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In addition to fixed deposits, the company has launched digital resources such as an NRI FD rates explorer, a GIFT Nifty tracker, a rupee versus dollar monitor, and a residential status calculator. It also aims to provide India tax filing services at more competitive rates than what is typically charged to NRIs.