Starfin India

What Starfin India does

Starfin India Private Limited operates as a Business Correspondent for State Bank of India, providing last-mile banking services to rural unbanked populations and urban branch-decongestion customers. Founded in 2011 by Jitender Singh and headquartered in Gurugram, Haryana, the company deploys a network of Customer Service Points (CSPs) and kiosk banking operators across Financial Inclusion Program (FIP) villages, metros, and urban areas in North India — primarily Western Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan. Starfin claims presence across 7 lakh unbanked villages and has facilitated the opening of 50,000+ no-frill SBI accounts in approximately 200 villages.

The company's core offerings are money transfer (Tatkal remittance, IMPS, home and non-home branch transfers), SBI No Frill account opening, and kiosk-based banking services — all routed through SBI's Kiosk Banking Platform using fingerprint authentication and MacID-based terminal identification. The underlying technology is conventional computer-based kiosk software rather than a proprietary AI or cloud-native platform. Revenue is generated entirely on a transaction-fee basis, with publicly disclosed fee schedules effective January 2018 covering cash deposits (0.25% with Rs. 2–8 floor/ceiling up to Rs. 10,000), cash withdrawals (0.50% with Rs. 3–14 floor/ceiling), IMPS transfers (Rs. 5 for transactions up to Rs. 2,000), and account opening (Rs. 20 per account).

Starfin operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of BLS E-Services following the August 2018 acquisition, under the leadership of founder & CEO Jitender Singh and a small management team that includes a Head of BD & Operations for the Government Vertical. The business model is fundamentally a regulatory-licensed distribution play, with no disclosed non-SBI customers and limited revenue diversification beyond the parent SBI relationship.

Name

Starfin India

Legal name

Starfin India (P) Ltd.

Website

https://starfin.co.in

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Starfin India is a Business Correspondent for State Bank of India that deploys Customer Service Points and kiosk banking operators to deliver money transfer, no-frill account opening, and basic banking services to rural unbanked populations and urban customers in North India.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Inclusion / Kiosk Banking Services

NAICS

Savings Institutions and Other Depository Credit Intermediation (522180), Depository Credit Intermediation (5221)

SIC

Functions Related To Depository Banking, Nec (6099)

akta.pro primary industry

BaaS Platforms & Sponsor Bank Enablement (FSAGALAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

SME, Microfinance & Financial Inclusion Facilities (BPADACAI)

Keywords

• Financial inclusion services
• Kiosk banking
• Business correspondent services
• Money transfer services
• Rural banking

Headquarters

HQ city

Haryana

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Banking Transaction Fees: Starfin generates revenue through transaction fees charged on various banking services including cash deposits, withdrawals, money transfers, and IMPS transactions performed at Customer Service Points. Fees are charged per transaction based on amount slabs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Starfin India operates as a Business Correspondent for State Bank of India, providing kiosk-based banking services through a network of Customer Service Points (CSPs) in rural unbanked villages and urban areas. The company offers money transfer (Tatkal remittance, IMPS, home/non-home branch transfers), SBI no-frill basic savings account opening, and general banking services such as cash deposits and withdrawals, enabling financial inclusion for populations without direct access to bank branches.

Product overview

Starfin India operates as a distribution-powered sales enabling services company and Business Correspondent for State Bank of India. The company offers a unified suite of financial inclusion services centered around three core offerings: Money Transfer (for instant fund transfers and deposits to SBI accounts), SBI No Frill Accounts (basic banking accounts for unbanked populations), and Banking Service (kiosk-based banking through Customer Service Points in FIP villages and urban areas). These services work together to enable financial transactions in unbanked villages across India.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Money Transfer Instant money transfer and cash deposit service to any SBI account through Starfin Customer Service Points. Supports Tatkal Money Remittance, IMPS transactions, and home/non-home branch transfers with daily transaction limits of Rs. 10,000 per account. Targeted at unbanked rural populations and urban customers seeking convenient access to SBI banking.
• SBI No Frill Accounts Basic savings bank account opening service enabling customers to open SBI accounts with just proof of ID and a passport-size photograph. Customers can deposit cash, make withdrawals, conduct money transfers, and make payments at Starfin Customer Service Points. Targeted at unbanked populations requiring accessible basic banking.
• Banking Service (Kiosk Banking) Kiosk-based banking service provided as a Business Correspondent for State Bank of India, enabling customers in Financial Inclusion Program (FIP) villages and urban areas to perform banking transactions without visiting SBI branches. Includes fingerprint authentication, MacID terminal identification, and SBI Kiosk module for online banking transactions.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50,000 bank accounts opened in 200 villages
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• State Bank of India (SBI)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2011Starfin is a Business Correspondent for State Bank of India. The company was appointed to appoint Customer Service Points for SBI for FIP (Financial Inclusion Program) Villages and in Metro and Urban areas for decongestion of branches. Starfin opens No-Frill accounts in FIP Villages. The contract was signed in 2011.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Ujjivan Small Finance Bank: Ujjivan SFB targets financially excluded customers with no-frills accounts, remittances, and microfinance through branches and agents, addressing the same unbanked rural segment as Starfin.
• Equitas Small Finance Bank: Equitas is a small finance bank serving unbanked and small-business customers with deposits, microfinance, and remittances through a branch and BC agent network, overlapping with Starfin's last-mile banking proposition.
• Bandhan Bank: Bandhan Bank serves underbanked customers across India through a BC and branch network, offering basic savings, remittance, and microfinance products comparable to Starfin's no-frill and money-transfer services.
• ESAF Small Finance Bank: ESAF SFB serves underserved rural and semi-urban customers with savings, remittance, and microfinance through branches and agents, addressing the same financial inclusion segment as Starfin.
• Jana Small Finance Bank: Jana Small Finance Bank (formerly Janalakshmi) focuses on unbanked and underbanked segments with microfinance, deposits, and remittances through a BC-style network, comparable to Starfin's model.

Emerging players

• Eko (Eko India Financial Services): Eko enables banks and fintechs to deliver deposits, remittances, and bill payments via a BC/agent network, overlapping with Starfin's CSP-based banking distribution in India.

Direct peers

• FINO Payments Bank: FINO is a payments bank built on the Business Correspondent/agent banking model providing basic banking, remittance, and financial inclusion services to underbanked customers across India, directly overlapping with Starfin's CSP-led distribution approach.
• Paytm Payments Bank: Paytm Payments Bank uses a digital-first plus agent-based model to offer zero-balance accounts, deposits, and money transfers to mass-market and unbanked customers in India, sharing Starfin's financial-inclusion customer profile.
• Airtel Payments Bank: Airtel Payments Bank operates a pan-India network of banking points for deposits, withdrawals, and remittances targeting unbanked and underbanked customers, competing head-on for the same CSP-style transactional volumes as Starfin.
• Spandana Sphoorty Financial: Spandana is a microfinance institution focused on financial inclusion for low-income and rural households, sharing Starfin's rural unbanked customer base and last-mile delivery model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Starfincoin-100077293360326

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Starfin India