Kaaj, a startup automating credit risk analysis for lenders, has closed a $3.8 million seed funding round led by Kindred Ventures and Better Tomorrow Ventures. The company aims to make small business loans more accessible by dramatically reducing underwriting time from days to minutes.
Founded in 2024 by married couple Shivi Sharma and Utsav Shah, Kaaj addresses a longstanding problem in banking: lenders spend equal time analyzing all loan applications regardless of size, making smaller loans economically unviable. Sharma, who worked in credit risk at American Express and Varo Bank for ten years, witnessed firsthand how this inefficiency prevented small businesses from accessing needed capital.
The platform uses AI-powered workflows to automatically identify, classify, verify and organize loan application documents including financial statements, bank statements and tax returns. What traditionally required manual verification over several days now happens automatically, with the system integrating directly into existing loan origination systems and CRM platforms like Salesforce and HubSpot.
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Kaaj also detects document tampering to support fraud prevention efforts.According to Shah, who serves as CEO, the efficiency gains are substantial. A team that previously processed 500 monthly applications can now handle 20,000 with the same staffing levels, making smaller loans economically feasible for lenders.Kaaj has already processed over $5 billion in loan applications for clients including Amur Equipment Finance and Fundr.
The startup differentiates itself from competitors like Middesk, Ocrolus and MoneyThumb by automating the complete credit analysis process rather than individual components.The new funding will support product development and expansion across independent and small business lenders.
The founders envision transforming a paper-intensive industry by handling the technical aspects of credit analysis through automation, allowing human underwriters to concentrate on relationship-building and subjective judgment calls where they add the most value.
