Meet man, donated more than Rs 6200 crore to employees, doesn’t even own a smartphone, he is…

R Thyagarajan is a known name in the Indian lending and insurance segment. He is the co-founder of Shriram Group, a financial services conglomerate headquartered in Chennai. The company was established back in 1974 by R Thyagarajan along with AVS Raja and T. Jayaraman. Initially, the company started with a chit funds business but it later turned into a lending giant. R Thyagarajan was able to build the massive Rs 87000 crore Shriram Group by lending money to low-income borrowers that don't get loans from banks. Unlike most successful businessmen, R Thyagarajan lives frugally. The executive has donated most of his money and drives a car worth Rs 6 lakh.

While speaking to Bloomberg in an interview, R Thyagarajan revealed that he launched the company to prove that it isn't risky to lend money to those without credit histories. Currently, R Thyagarajan’s Shriram Group employs 1,00,000 people. His company is a pioneer in extending credit to the poor sector of the society for trucks, tractors and other vehicles.

Born in an affluent farming family in Tamil Nadu, R Thyagarajan did his graduation in mathematics. He did his master's degree at the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata. He joined New India Assurance Company in 1961. He kept working for two decades as an employee in several finance companies. He started entrepreneurship at an age of 37. Now the group owns 30 companies.

R Thyagarajan gave away more than Rs 6210 crore. He gave away all his shareholdings to a group of employees. He transferred the entire money to the Shriram Ownership Trust. Thyagarajan drives a normal car and doesn't own a mobile as he believes they are a distraction. He also lives in a small house. The company has over 23 million consumers. The market value of the flagship company, Shriram Finance Limited, is about Rs 865 billion.