BharatPe was incorporated in March 2018 with 1 lakh rupees of capital. Business Today reports that Bhavik Koladiya and Shashvat Nakrani set it up, and Grover joined by taking shares and held nearly 32 percent by July 2018.
The company grew on a free, interoperable QR code. In 2019 it signed Salman Khan as brand ambassador. In August 2021 a round of about 370 million dollars led by Tiger Global valued it at about 2.85 billion dollars, and it became a unicorn.
In early 2022 the board began a governance review into alleged financial irregularities. Grover resigned on 28 February 2022 as managing director and said he and his family had been vilified.
Years of litigation followed, including an emergency arbitration at SIAC and a data theft allegation against Koladiya in February 2023. Nalin Negi became interim CEO in January 2023 and CEO in April 2024. On 30 September 2024 BharatPe and Grover settled, ending the legal cases.