A values-driven team
Kafene is headquartered in NYC with an office in Delaware and a distributed workforce of values-driven fintech veterans. We take pride in fostering a dynamic workplace culture that values collaboration, innovation, and mutual support. Last year, we were selected for Built In Best Places to Work and Forbes' Best Startup Employers.
When Neal Desai and James Schuler were introduced by a mutual friend in 2019, they quickly recognized a shared belief...
...that mainstream financial services lacked an efficient way to provide affordable, transparent financing for low- and no-credit consumers.
Neal had spent 15 years as a Wall Street trader and portfolio manager before deciding to pivot to the world of fintechs. He soon found himself at the high-growth startup Octane Lending, where he rose to serve as CFO.
He had started formulating an idea for a new venture, and was looking for a partner to make that idea a reality. He found that partner in James, a serial entrepreneur whose accomplishments eventually made him a member of Forbes’ 30 Under 30. James had been accepted to Y Combinator while still in high school, skipped college to become a Thiel Foundation Fellow, and had founded microfinance startups based on London and Africa. He was equipped with deep experience building products that would serve populations left behind by big banks and traditional lenders.
When Neal and James met, they realized that their combined expertise would allow them to build something transformative. Together, they envisioned a company that would increase access to transparent, affordable financing for customers at every point on the credit spectrum.