How GyanDhan Founders Are Fixing India’s Broken Student Loan System | The Living Pod

In this episode of The Living Pod, Saurabh Arora sits down with the founders of GyanDhan, Jainesh Sinha (Co-Founder) Ankit Mehra (Co-Founder & CEO) & Aman Jain (Co-Founder & CMO) ,to uncover the real story behind India’s student loan ecosystem — and why loan approvals are still such a painful process for millions of students.

From their IIT days to Capital One, from personal struggles with getting education loans to building a nationwide financing platform — this conversation dives deep into the problems, the mindset, and the mission behind fixing India’s broken student loan system.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

➡️ How the founders personally struggled with education loans, and why that became the seed thought for GyanDhan

➡️ Why education loan approvals are still so hard in India

➡️ Their experiences with fundraising, marketplace building, and working with multiple lenders

➡️ How personal stories, family pressure, and socio-economic realities shaped their decisions

➡️ Their vision of becoming an ecosystem enabler rather than competing with partners

➡️ Hard truths about admission consultancies, loan conflicts, and student-first thinking

➡️ Real talk about startup lows, team loyalty, long-term conviction, and why patience in early teams matters

➡️ Why students often get stuck with expensive loans, improper counselling, and lack of transparent guidance

➡️ The future of student financing and what needs to change in India

If you’re a student planning to study abroad or a parent navigating loan complexities, or someone building in the education/fintech space — this episode gives you clarity .

This is the inside story — straight from the founders who built the system from scratch.

If you found this episode valuable, hit the Like button 👍 and Subscribe for more deep-dive conversations on student life, careers, finance, and global education.

💬 Have questions about student loans or study-abroad finance? Drop them in the comments.

CHAPTERS-

00:00 – 00:40 | Teaser.
00:40 – 02:02 | Introduction
02:02 – 05:10 | How GyanDhan Was Born
05:10 – 08:17 | Meeting the Co-Founder & Building Early Trust
08:17 – 12:06 | Why Student Loan Approvals Are So Hard in India
12:06 – 17:50 | Founders’ Backgrounds: IIT, Capital One, and Life Abroad
17:50 – 22:48 | The Moment They Knew the Problem Needed Solving
22:48 – 27:27 | The Early Startup Phase: Bootstrapping & High-Risk Choices
27:27 – 31:13 | What Makes a Great Co-Founder Equation
31:13 – 36:34 | Marketplace vs Building Everything In-House
36:34 – 41:14 | Fundraising Reality: Does Capital Create a Moat?
41:14 – 44:03 | Why Collaboration Beats Competition
44:03 – 47:22 | Why Students Overpay for Loans
47:22 – 51:09 | Building a Student-First Platform
51:09 – 1:09:20 | Scaling GyanDhan & Fixing Real-World Problems
1:09:20 – 1:18:38 | How the Ecosystem Should Work Together
1:18:38 – 1:24:56 | What Students Really Need: Clarity, Not Complexity
1:24:56 – 1:35:28 | Startup Reality: Building Through Highs & Lows
1:35:28 – 1:40:46 | The Future of Student Financing in India
1:40:46 – 1:41:41 | Closing Thoughts

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