Snapdeal announces Jason Kothari as CEO of FreeCharge, to invest $20 million

E-commerce marketplace Snapdeal appointed Jason Kothari as the CEO of its digital payments platform FreeCharge and said it will infuse an additional USD 20 million into the e-wallet firm. The investment will further accelerate innovations and growth, Snapdeal said in a statement.

In addition to the role of the CEO, Jason will continue as Chief Strategy and Investment Officer at Snapdeal. He will also join the Board of Directors of FreeCharge. The Softbank-backed Snapdeal had acquired FreeCharge in April 2015.

"As India moves towards a cashless and digital economy, we are certain that FreeCharge will play a pivotal role in the transition. Jason is a strong, strategic and versatile business leader and entrepreneur who has already been the CEO of two successful companies," Kunal Bahl, co-founder and CEO of Snapdeal, said.

Most recently, Kothari was the CEO of Softbank-backed online real estate company Housing.com, where he led the turnaround of the company. Prior to joining Housing.com, Kothari was the CEO and Vice Chairman of character-based entertainment company Valiant Entertainment.

"The digital payments space in India is forecast to be over USD 1 trillion by 2025," Kothari said adding that he expects FreeCharge to continue to play a key role in this digital payments revolution.