Helium Raises ₹5 Crore to Fix Bengaluru's Deposit Problem

Security deposits have long been one of urban India's quietest affordability problems. In Bengaluru, where deposits of ten months' rent are not uncommon, a tenant moving into a mid-range flat can find themselves locking away several lakh rupees before they have unpacked a single box. Helium, a proptech startup founded in January 2025 by Sahil Ludhani and Ashutosh Tandon, is building a model to change that and has just raised ₹5 crore in its first funding round to prove it out at scale.

How Helium's rental deposit model works

Rather than acting as a marketplace or a financing intermediary, Helium takes a more direct approach. The company leases homes from property owners directly, paying the full security deposit itself. Tenants then move in by paying a significantly lower upfront amount, with the remainder structured around their credit profile rather than an immediate cash requirement. This model removes the lump-sum barrier for tenants without asking landlords to accept any reduction in their deposit security, since Helium stands between the two parties as the leaseholder. The founders' backgrounds span consumer internet and financial services, which gives the team a grounding in both the product and the credit risk dimensions of what they are building.

The investor backing and what it signals

The ₹5 crore seed round has drawn a notably strong angel base. Backers include Albinder Dhindsa of Blinkit, Kunal Shah of CRED, Pankaj Chaddah, Mohit Gupta, Akriti Chopra, Gunjan Patidar, Nitin Gupta, Surobhi Das, Miten Sampat and Aakrit Vaish. The roster reads like a cross-section of India's most operationally credible consumer and fintech founders, which is a meaningful signal for an early-stage startup targeting a problem that sits at the intersection of housing, credit and consumer behaviour. Angel backing of this quality typically reflects conviction not just in the idea but in the founding team's ability to navigate a complex, regulated market.

A sector that is suddenly attracting capital

Helium's raise sits within a broader pattern of investor interest in India's rental deposit and rent financing space. The segment has seen several rounds in quick succession, with Truva securing $9 million in January 2026 and the recent acquisition of CirclePe by Crib combining rental property management with deposit financing under a single platform. The convergence of these deals points to a growing conviction among investors that India's rental market, which has historically been dominated by informal, cash-heavy arrangements, is ready for a technology and credit layer that makes the entire experience more accessible and predictable for both tenants and landlords.

Why Bengaluru is the right market to start

Bengaluru's rental market has several characteristics that make it an ideal testing ground for a credit-linked deposit model. Tenant turnover is high relative to other Indian cities, driven by a large young professional and migrant population. Deposits are steep relative to monthly rents. Demand for quality managed rental housing consistently outpaces supply in the city's key IT corridors. And the renter demographic skews toward credit-eligible, income-stable individuals who are well-suited to a product that uses credit profiling rather than upfront cash. If Helium can demonstrate healthy conversion and low credit losses in Bengaluru, the model has a clear path to the other high-demand rental cities where the same deposit burden creates the same friction for the same tenant profile.

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