Khushboo Maheshwari, an alumna of IIT-Bombay and Harvard Business School, is the co-founder of Kaarva, a fintech startup that helps middle- and low-income employees get early access to their salaries, loans, and advances.

Inspired by leaders like Indra Nooyi, Khushboo initially wanted a corporate career but changed her path during her MBA, deciding to build something meaningful that could help people.

After working briefly in consulting, she returned to India and joined InMobi, later trying a fashion tech startup that didn't take off.

She then worked at N/Core, helping non-profit startups, where she saw how many Indians live paycheck to paycheck and suffer due to delays in accessing their own earnings.

This led her to start Kaarva with her IIT junior, Agam Goyal. Kaarva partners with employers to offer real-time salary access and affordable credit through a platform that charges very low or no fees.

The platform helps employees avoid late fees and high-interest borrowing.

Kaarva now serves 30,000 employees and has processed over 30,000 salary advances monthly. During COVID-19, they launched a support tool for employees facing financial stress.

Despite challenges like funding while pregnant, Khushboo aims to scale Kaarva and promote employee financial well-being across India through sustainable, accessible financial solutions.