'You can start with just Rs 10,000' — How Jiraaf is making private credit accessible to all

Once the domain of institutions and high-net-worth individuals, private credit is quietly undergoing a transformation in India.

At the forefront of this shift is Jiraaf, a digital investment platform that is simplifying access to high-yield fixed-income products like structured credit, listed bonds, and asset-backed lending.

Co-founded by Saurav Ghosh and Vineet Agarwal, Jiraaf aims to bridge the gap between sophisticated credit instruments and everyday investors — starting with as little as Rs 10,000.


In an exclusive interview on ETMarket Livestream, the co-founders share how they’re unlocking opportunities beyond traditional FDs, building trust through transparency, and reshaping India’s fixed-income landscape, one investor at a time. Edited Excerpts -
Kshitij Anand: Tell us a little bit about Jiraaf and how the journey started.
Saurav Ghosh: At Jiraaf, we are a fixed income platform—an online bond platform that is SEBI-registered. We operate as a stockbroker in the debt segment and are governed by the OBP (Online Bond Platform) guidelines issued by SEBI.

Our journey began in 2021, so we’re about four years old as a platform and as an organization. The idea was born from a simple thought that both Vineet and I shared. Prior to Jiraaf, we had over 10 years of experience in debt markets, primarily on the institutional side. What we closely observed was that many HNI investors had significant allocations to debt.

We often came across interesting investment opportunities on the institutional side, and we used to think—if we had HNI-level capital ourselves, we’d definitely want to participate in such opportunities. That was the spark.

As we explored the market further, it became very evident that, in their affluence journey, as people’s capital grows, they tend to allocate a significant portion of their portfolio to fixed income and debt.

This trend isn’t just local—it’s been playing out in global markets for the past couple of decades. We saw a big white space and a major opportunity. That’s what led to the inception of Jiraaf.

In India, the theme is quite straightforward: as people become wealthier, they naturally look to diversify into different asset classes. Fixed income and debt are natural diversifications from equities. It's a completely different asset class.

That’s why we believe fixed income and debt will be the next big asset class in India over the coming decade or two—and we want Jiraaf to be at the forefront of that transformation.

Kshitij Anand: Saurav mentioned how a lot of affluent investors are venturing into the debt space. Vineet, could you share your perspective on why there’s growing interest in private credit and structured debt among affluent retail investors today?
Vineet Agarwal: Absolutely. As Saurav mentioned, a few years ago, the only way to access private credit or high-yield investment opportunities was by being an HNI willing to invest upwards of ₹1 to ₹2 crore in each fund.

And, of course, you needed to be part of that elite circle served by the top wealth managers in the country.

But things have changed over the last few years. With platforms like ours, access to these investment opportunities has been democratized. Today, even with as little as Rs 10,000, you can invest in listed securities through our platform—something that was previously unavailable.

Not just access—there’s also greater transparency and knowledge sharing. We provide presentations and detailed information about each security, so investors can understand what they’re putting their money into.

In essence, we’re solving for three key things: knowledge, access, and democratization. That’s why more and more investors are allocating a portion of their capital to these asset classes.

Kshitij Anand: What role are digital platforms playing in bridging the gap between HNI-only products and mass retail participation? How is Jiraaf contributing to this?
Saurav Ghosh: There are three or four key aspects. First and foremost is accessibility. Traditionally, a lot of these products were available only to HNI investors.

But as people begin to realise the power of the retail investor base in India, it’s clear that this is a large and growing market. We want to make these products accessible to retail investors as well.

So, as digital platforms, we’re bringing products—previously reserved for HNIs—into the hands of retail participants.

The second point is that, to enable retail participation, the product must be available at a retail-friendly ticket size. As Vineet mentioned earlier, we have democratised these investments in a way that today, you can start investing with as little as Rs 1,000, Rs 10,000, or Rs 1 lakh, depending on the opportunity.

The third point is about support. HNIs typically have access to dedicated wealth managers or teams to guide them. For retail investors, we’re making it possible to participate digitally—with just a click of a button.

Whether you’re sitting at home or on the go, you can invest via your mobile phone. Not only can you make the investment seamlessly, but you can also track and monitor it later.

So, across three dimensions—accessibility, lowering the investment threshold, and enabling digital participation—we are opening up the entire retail market. And in India, this is a massive opportunity.

Kshitij Anand: In fact, we saw a wave of participants entering equity markets post-COVID, largely because brokerage houses simplified KYC and onboarding, making the experience seamless. That, in turn, triggered a flurry of new investors entering the equity space. Similarly, you’ve made it possible for many investors to access the bond market—an area that’s now generating a lot of curiosity and interest. So I want to ask: how have digital platforms like Jiraaf simplified access to high-yield bond investments for everyday investors?
Vineet Agarwal: As Saurav also mentioned, one point I’d like to add is that India has always been a fixed deposit-driven investment market. FDs have traditionally been the biggest asset class for Indian investors—we all love them.

But in the last couple of years, people have started realising that you can now access AA-rated bonds offering 9% to 10% yields. That’s almost twice the return of a fixed deposit. And with just a click of a button, you can now invest in these bonds from well-known companies like Shriram, among others.

This represents a very powerful investment opportunity—where investors can significantly enhance the rate at which they build wealth.

People are starting to understand the nuances of these instruments, becoming more aware of their potential. And of course, technology is playing a huge role in making this kind of investment possible—in just a minute or two.

Saurav Ghosh: I would like to add one point here, actually, if you allow me. You specifically asked about the high-yield part as well. A big role that we are also playing is in awareness and education. One thing that has happened is that, in general, retail or individual investors consider anything that is high-yield as risky or prone to default, and so on.

One key area of education that we are trying to address is helping retail investors understand that high yield comes with a risk-reward tradeoff. So yes, you are taking additional risk, but are you getting a proportionate reward?

One key factor that most people, especially listeners, should understand is that if you go all the way up to investment grade—so triple B minus rating and above is considered investment grade in India—the default percentages are actually quite low.

These numbers are published by rating agencies and show that default rates are sub-0.7% to 0.8%. So, you need to evaluate the type of risk you're taking in exchange for the additional return.

Today, a triple B-rated bond might offer yields in the range of 13–13.5%, with a default risk of just 0.4–0.5% as a category. Within this space, you can also choose lower-risk options—for example, investing in a gold loan NBFC, where the debt is secured with real assets and default rates are even lower.

The point here is that retail investors should assess the reward in proportion to the risk. If the default rates are below 0.5%, then earning 12–13% returns can be quite attractive. That’s where these bonds start to make sense, especially when included in a well-diversified portfolio. High-yield bonds rated BBB, BBB+, or BBB- can become a compelling part of such a strategy.

Kshitij Anand: In fact, one of the major hindrances—or rather concerns—that most investors have, especially when we talk about equity as a platform, is the issue of liquidity. I just wanted to understand from you: how do platforms like Jiraaf ensure liquidity for retail investors in otherwise illiquid bond investments?
Saurav Ghosh: Liquidity in the Indian bond markets still has a long journey ahead. For example, in the US, bond investments are almost as liquid as equity investments because secondary market trading volumes are very high.

In India, that’s not the case yet. If you want to exit your bond investments prematurely, you may not easily find a buyer in the secondary market on the exchanges.

Having said that, as digital platforms trying to deepen the bond market in India, we do a few things. First and foremost, we bring in investments that are short- to medium-term in nature so that investors can plan their investment horizon better. We typically avoid offering bonds with a tenure longer than 24 months. We understand that planning finances over a four- or five-year period without liquidity options can be challenging.

Second, we structure these instruments well. That means it’s not just a matter of investing in a two-year bond and getting your capital back only after two years.

Instead, we ensure investors receive monthly or quarterly repayments in a proportionate manner. So, even if you're in a one- or two-year bond, you get a portion of your cash flow back every month or quarter. This introduces a level of liquidity and reduces the burden of waiting for the full tenure.

Third, in cases of emergencies where investors need their capital back earlier, we, as a platform, assist in finding liquidity in the secondary market. We are always there to support our investors.

However, given that liquidity remains a challenge in India’s debt markets, investors should ideally approach these investments with a hold-to-maturity mindset. It’s advisable to invest in one- to two-year papers, where financial visibility is higher, and prioritize instruments that offer monthly or quarterly cash flows.

That way, your capital starts returning to you in a periodic manner rather than being locked up entirely.

Vineet Agarwal: Having said that, one point I’d like to make is that I personally feel liquidity is a "good-to-have" feature—it’s not a "must-have" feature for an investment. People should invest in a planned manner and remain invested till maturity, because that is when their capital truly gets compounded. They should only consider exiting the investment in case of an emergency.

Kshitij Anand: You did mention credit rating, but is there something else? Is there some kind of due diligence or credit analysis that a platform like Jiraaf conducts before listing a bond opportunity on the platform?
Vineet Agarwal: Obviously, as a platform, we have a very strict internal policy regarding which bonds get listed—barring, I would say, Government of India securities. If it is issued by the Government of India, there is no analysis that we need to do. But for corporate bonds, yes, we have a strict internal policy.

We review the company’s financials, examine its past issuances, and assess the track record of the management.

As a policy, we do not list very long-tenured bonds on our platform because we believe it is very difficult to make extremely long-term credit calls.

We have specific frameworks in place for each asset class and industry, and we select particular issuances and companies based on those internal underwriting frameworks.

In addition to this, we also simulate a lot of financial scenarios and carry out periodic tracking. Based on this ongoing monitoring, we decide which bonds to list and trade on the platform.
Kshitij Anand: Now that we are talking about certain risks, what risks should retail investors be aware of when exploring alternate fixed-income products?
Saurav Ghosh: Generally, I’d say there are largely two risks that come into play when you invest in debt instruments in India. The first one, which we’ve already spoken about, is liquidity risk.

This is the risk that if you need your money back before maturity, it might be difficult to exit the investment. As we discussed, people can plan better by investing in short- to medium-term opportunities, which can help manage liquidity to some extent.

The second is credit risk, which is the risk that the company borrowing from you might default. This is a key risk in India, and in debt as an asset class in general.

Now, the way to think about credit risk is that debt investments are significantly less risky than equity investments in the same company. Most of the debt we list on our platform is senior secured. That means you're a senior lender—you stand higher in repayment priority than an equity investor.

And as a secured lender, your investment is backed by assets on the company’s balance sheet. So, unless the company goes into complete bankruptcy and cannot pay back anything at all, only then is there a possibility of losing a portion of your capital.

For example, in equity markets, even if the industry or the company underperforms, you might lose capital. But in debt, you typically don’t lose capital unless there is a total bankruptcy situation.

That’s why, when evaluating credit risk, it's important to also assess the probability of such defaults. In India, over the decades, we have a lot of data. According to most rating agencies, investment-grade instruments—rated BBB- and above—have default rates of less than 0.7–0.8%. That’s the level of risk we are generally dealing with.

So, when making an investment, you can make smart choices to mitigate both credit and liquidity risks. For credit risk, you can avoid sectors that are currently under stress or might not do well over the next three to five years. Also, avoid companies where there may be concerns about corporate governance.

Prefer companies audited by reputable firms. These are anyway part of our credit evaluation process at Jiraaf, as Vineet mentioned, but investors can think about these aspects themselves as well.

On the liquidity side, it’s just a matter of better financial planning. Invest in opportunities where the cash flow schedule matches your financial needs. So, to sum up, liquidity risk and credit risk are the two key risks to consider when investing in debt.

Now, there is also interest rate risk, which typically affects institutional investors more. Changes in interest rates can affect the market value of bonds. But most retail investors invest with a hold-to-maturity mindset, as we discussed.

So, interest rate movements don’t impact them much. If you invest in a bond offering a 12% yield, you’ll earn that 12% till maturity, regardless of how market interest rates move. That’s why I didn’t focus much on interest rate risk—it’s more relevant for institutions.

Kshitij Anand: And as we are in an environment where interest rates are going down, that’s another important factor to consider.
Vineet Agarwal: It’s a great time to lock in rates today.

Kshitij Anand: Absolutely. This is the right time to lock in rates. My next question is related to that—I’d like your perspective on the market. With equities facing global pressure, risk-averse investors might want to turn to the bond market.

As you rightly pointed out, this is the right time to lock in yields. How are you reading this trend right now? What kind of queries are you receiving?

Vineet Agarwal: You’re absolutely right. In times of market volatility or uncertainty, investors naturally gravitate towards more stable investment options, and bonds definitely fall into that category. But I would say more importantly, what we’ve observed over the past couple of years is that regardless of market conditions, people have started to realize that bonds are an essential part of any investment portfolio.

You can adjust your allocation depending on market conditions—say from 20% in normal times to 30–40% in more volatile situations—but the idea is not to go from 0 to 40%. Bonds solve a real problem that investors face: the lack of good options for short-term investments.

Equity, by nature, is a long-term play—you need a 7–10-year horizon. Real estate is also long-term.

Bonds, on the other hand, fill that short- to medium-term investment gap. And as Saurav mentioned, they allow for detailed financial planning. You can structure bonds to match your cash flow needs—monthly, quarterly, or annual repayments.

Whether it’s planning for a vacation next year, funding education, or paying EMIs, bond investments allow you to plan accordingly.

This is a real, tangible benefit for investors, and people are starting to see that. That’s why more and more are allocating a portion of their wealth to this asset class. And yes, in volatile times, that allocation naturally increases.

Kshitij Anand: Could we eventually see bonds becoming as popular as SIPs among retail investors? I’ve sort of penned one tagline — “Bonds are not just for big guys anymore”. So just like we have for mutual funds — “Mutual fund sahi hai” — I thought we should also come up with a tagline. I don’t know if you like it or not, but over to you on that.
Saurav Ghosh: Absolutely. As India, as a country, becomes more wealthy, people are also becoming smarter. So, they will start to look at bonds as an asset class which, as Vineet said, is a very integral part of a portfolio. It’s not just an asset class for good times or bad times — it should always be a part of your overall allocation.

So, for example, today, when an individual is earning, let’s say, ₹50,000 a month, they might be investing ₹30,000 only in equity mutual funds, because they are not yet aware of or have not yet been exposed to bonds as an asset class.

But it's just a matter of a year or two before we start seeing people who are doing a ₹50,000 SIP allocating maybe 60–70% to equity and 30–40% to debt. I think financial planners in India are also encouraging this movement.

So yes, SIPs in bonds — and not only for the big guys, as you rightly said — is a theme that will play out very, very soon. We, at Jiraaf, have actually seen it play out quite actively over the last three years.

In fact, following the recent volatility in the equity markets over the last year, we’ve seen a 300% growth in participation on our platform. That has been a tremendous outcome, as more investors begin to understand and explore fixed income and debt more actively.

So yes, SIPs in bonds are very near — just around the corner. And bonds are definitely not only for the big guys.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by experts are their own. These do not represent the views of the Economic Times)