Fi Money Loan App Real or Fake? Not Lending in 2026

Fi Money was a real app, and the loans it arranged came from regulated lenders. The main one, Fi Loans, is the brand of Stock Guardians (India) Private Limited, an NBFC on RBI's register. The catch is timing. As of November 2026, Fi can't give you a new loan. The app is off Google Play, and its loan screens have been switched off.

So "is it real?" gets a yes, but "is it safe to apply?" has a stranger answer: there's nothing left to apply to. If you already owe Fi Loans money, your loan still runs. If someone offers you a fresh Fi loan by phone, SMS or a download link, treat it as a scam until you've checked.

Quick answer

Real company: Epifi Technologies Private Limited of Bengaluru ran the Fi Money app. The app itself didn't lend.
Regulated lenders: Fi named banks, NBFCs and two peer-to-peer platforms as partners. Stock Guardians, trading as Fi Loans, is entry 7302 on RBI's NBFC list.
No new loans: search Google Play for the Fi app and you get "not found". Fi Loans stopped showing loans inside it on 30 April 2026.
Old loans carry on: nothing changes on your interest rate, term or due dates, and autopay keeps running.
Watch for fakes: Fi's website still shows loan ads, and scammers can copy them.

Who ran Fi Money and who lent the money

Fi was a neobank app. It offered Federal Bank savings accounts, investments and loans in one place. Its own pages say plainly that Fi isn't a bank and doesn't hold a banking licence. Your savings account always sat with Federal Bank.

For loans, Fi worked as a lending service provider, or LSP. It showed you offers from partner lenders and ranked them. The lender approved the loan, paid it out and owns the debt.

Fi's privacy policy, read in November 2026, lists these lending partners:

Federal Bank and IDFC FIRST Bank, both private sector banks
Aditya Birla Capital, formerly Aditya Birla Finance
Earlysalary Services, the NBFC behind Fibe
InCred Financial Services
Stock Guardians (India) Private Limited, sold under the Fi Loans name
LiquiLoans (NDX P2P) and LenDenClub (Innofin Solutions), peer-to-peer platforms that match you with individual lenders

Moneyview, Finnable and Creditlinks appear too, but as referral partners, not lenders. An older copy of Fi's complaints page, saved in March 2026, also listed Bajaj Finserv under lending.

The name that matters most is Fi Loans. Its website says Fi Loans is the brand name of Stock Guardians, a non-deposit-taking NBFC. Stock Guardians, in turn, names Fi Money as its lending service provider for personal loans.

There's one loose end. In April 2024, Fi told staff it had won an NBFC licence. Inc42 later reported that it couldn't find one on RBI's portal. RBI's list does carry Stock Guardians, an older company first registered in 1992, which may explain the gap. We couldn't read MCA records, so we can't confirm who owns it.

Is Fi Money RBI registered? How we checked

Apps don't get RBI registration. Lenders do. So the real test is whether Fi's lenders are regulated and whether they name Fi. Here's what we did on 4 November 2026. You can repeat each step.

Find your lender's name. Your loan agreement and Key Fact Statement (KFS) print it. For many Fi borrowers it will say Fi Loans or Stock Guardians.
Open RBI's NBFC list. We used the edition with data as on 30 September 2026.
Search for the lender. Stock Guardians is entry 7302 under RBI's Mumbai office, a Base layer NBFC. InCred is 3103, Earlysalary 2079 and Aditya Birla Capital 174.
Check banks on a different list. Federal Bank and IDFC FIRST Bank aren't NBFCs. Both appear on RBI's list of private sector banks.
See if the lender names the app. Stock Guardians lists Fi Money as its LSP. LenDenClub lists Epifi Technologies, with Fi Money as the app.
Try RBI's Digital Lending Apps directory. It wouldn't load for us, so that check is still open.
Look for RBI action. We found none against Stock Guardians. LenDenClub's operator was fined ₹1,99,50,000 in August 2024 for breaking peer-to-peer and digital lending rules. That's a compliance penalty, not proof of fraud.

Our guide on how to check if a loan app is RBI approved explains each search.

What a Fi Money loan cost

These are the terms Fi and its main lender published. They only matter now if you already hold a Fi loan, since new applications aren't possible as of November 2026.

Term	Fi's loans page	Fi Loans' own policy
Loan amount	Up to ₹10,00,000	Not stated
Tenure	6 months to 4 years (pre-approved loans)	1 to 60 months
Interest	From 12.75% a year, usually 12% to 36%	18% to 45% a year
Processing fee	1% to 4% (its FAQ says 1% to 3%)	2% to 4% plus taxes
Bounce charge	₹300 to ₹800 plus GST	₹300 plus GST
Late payment	2% to 4% a month on the overdue EMI	0.1% a day on the overdue amount
Foreclosure	0% to 4%, or none except on Federal Bank loans (FAQ)	Zero
APR	Not published	Not published on its site

Here's an example at the bottom of Fi Loans' range. Say you borrowed ₹1,00,000 for 12 months at 18% a year with a 2% fee. The fee is ₹2,000 plus 18% GST, so ₹2,360 comes off first and about ₹97,640 reaches your bank.

Your EMI would be ₹9,168. You'd repay ₹1,10,016 in all, and ₹10,016 of that is interest.

Fi's own calculator paints a gentler picture. It shows ₹1,00,000 over 12 months at 12.75% as an EMI of ₹8,920. Which figure fits you depends on your lender, and only your loan agreement binds.

Fi also gave you 3 days after payout to cancel without a penalty, though the processing fee wasn't refunded. Rates stayed fixed once paid out.

Why some people think Fi Money is fake

Fi wasn't a scam. But its wind-down left a trail that looks odd if you land on it today:

The app has vanished. Search Google Play and you won't find it. Fi's own download button now opens dead store pages. We found no report of a Google ban, and the removal fits the wind-down.
Loan ads still run. Fi's home page still offers up to ₹10 lakh in 5 minutes. That copy is out of date.
Old instructions. Fi's loan FAQ says EMIs come out of your Fi savings account on the 5th of each month. Fi no longer offers that account.
Dead help pages. The grievance link in Fi's footer opens an error page, and its FAQ hub shows no topics.
Two officer names. Fi Loans names Mr. Tarique Anwar for the grievance inbox, while LenDenClub's list names Mr Srinivas R for the same address.
The licence question. Inc42 found no NBFC licence in Fi's own name. The licence sits with Stock Guardians instead.

What's normal? A tech company running the app while a bank or NBFC lends is how most loan apps work. So are KYC checks, a credit check and an autopay mandate.

What borrowers said about Fi Money

There's no live Google Play page to read now. The last archived copy, saved on 12 January 2026, showed 3.8 stars from 288K reviews and 10M+ downloads. Those ratings cover the whole banking app, not just loans.

The few dated reviews in that copy were complaints. One, from 8 January 2026, says the user's ₹1 lakh+ was stuck and support closed tickets without a fix. Another, from 18 November 2025, describes poor support and savings stuck in the app.

With the listing gone, we couldn't check recent reviews for fakes. Old stars describe a product that no longer exists.

How to spot a fake Fi Money app, agent or call

With the real app gone, any new "Fi Money" loan offer should worry you.

No app to install. Fi isn't on the Play Store as of November 2026. An APK file, a WhatsApp link or a lookalike app using the Fi name isn't Fi.
No fresh offers. Fi Loans now writes to existing borrowers by email. A cold call offering a new Fi loan of up to ₹10 lakh is a red flag.
Check the email address. Fi's own addresses end in fi.care or fi.money, and Fi Loans uses stockguardians.com. A Gmail address claiming to be Fi is fake.
Pay only through the lender's link. When an EMI bounces, Fi Loans sends a payment link to your registered email and mobile number. Never pay a caller's personal UPI ID or QR code.
No upfront fee. Since Fi isn't giving new loans, anyone asking for a "processing fee" before payout is running a scam.
Recovery calls. If someone chases you for a Fi debt, ask for the lender's name and your loan number. Then confirm by email with Fi Loans before you pay.

What to do if something goes wrong with your Fi loan

Keep your loan agreement, KFS, the lender's emails and bank statements. Then use Fi Loans' published complaint levels:

Email the LSP grievance officer. Write to grievanceofficer@fi.care from your registered email ID. The same inbox handles statements, queries and foreclosure.
Go to Stock Guardians. Still stuck? Write to its Nodal Grievance Redressal Officer at support@stockguardians.com. Its contact page also lists 080-47485490.
Escalate to the Principal Nodal Officer. That's Mr. Sujith, at nodal.gro@stockguardians.com.
Complain to RBI. No fix within 30 days? File with the RBI Integrated Ombudsman at cms.rbi.org.in, or call 14448.
Report fraud fast. If a fake agent took money or someone threatens you, call the cybercrime helpline on 1930.

Fi Loans also gives timings. A statement or repayment schedule should arrive within 48 working hours of asking. After you close the loan, your NOC should reach your email within 15 working days.

If another lender, such as Federal Bank or IDFC FIRST Bank, gave your loan, contact that lender directly. Savings account problems now go to Federal Bank too. Fi's home page points users to contact@federalbank.co.in or 1800-420-1199.

Every contact we found is on our Fi Money customer care page. Our list of lender helplines covers other apps.

Should you still use Fi Money?

For a new loan, no. There's no working app to apply through as of November 2026.

Fi still matters to you if:

you have a Fi Loans loan and want to repay, part-pay or close it
you got an old Fi offer, call or message and want to check it
you need a statement or NOC for a loan taken through Fi

Look elsewhere if:

you need a new personal loan
you want an app screen to track and repay what you owe
you'd rather get help by chat than by email

Regulated options with similar loan sizes include Moneyview, Navi and IDFC FIRST Bank, which was one of Fi's own lending partners. Get a KFS from two of them and compare the total you'd repay. For ratings and the full breakdown, read our full Fi Money review.

Frequently asked questions

Is Fi Money real or fake?

Fi Money is real. Epifi Technologies Private Limited ran the app, while banks and NBFCs did the lending, with Stock Guardians (the Fi Loans brand) chief among them. We found no RBI caution against Fi. Still, the app is off the Play Store now and can't start a new loan. Treat any fresh Fi loan offer as suspect.

Is Fi Money RBI registered?

Fi isn't registered itself, because it was a lending service provider, not a lender. The NBFC most tied to it, Stock Guardians (India) Private Limited, is entry 7302 in RBI's register dated 30 September 2026. Other partners include Federal Bank and IDFC FIRST Bank, which are banks, and NBFCs such as InCred and Aditya Birla Capital.

What did a Fi Money loan really cost?

Fi's page put partner rates at 12.75% to 36% a year. Fi Loans, the lender, sets 18% to 45% in its own policy. Its processing fee is 2% to 4% plus taxes, and late charges run at 0.1% a day. At 18% on ₹1,00,000 for 12 months, the EMI is ₹9,168. Your agreement shows the rate you actually got.

What is the Fi Money customer care number?

Fi's contact page lists no phone number, only email at help@fi.care and in-app chat. For a Fi Loans loan, email grievanceofficer@fi.care from your registered email ID. Stock Guardians, the lender, gives 080-47485490 and support@stockguardians.com. For a Federal Bank savings account opened through Fi, Fi points you to 1800-420-1199.

Is Fi Money shutting down?

Banking on the Fi app stopped in March 2026, and Federal Bank customers now log in through FedMobile. The loan screens went on 30 April 2026, and the Play Store no longer lists the app. TechCrunch and Inc42 report a pivot to AI software for companies. Loans already paid out keep running.

I got a call about a Fi Money loan. Is it genuine?

If you have a Fi loan, a reminder about a missed EMI can be real. Ask for the lender's name and your loan number, then confirm by email with Fi Loans before you pay. An offer of a new Fi loan isn't genuine, since Fi isn't lending through its app as of November 2026. Report threats or fraud on 1930.

How do I close or foreclose my Fi loan?

Email grievanceofficer@fi.care from your registered email ID and ask to foreclose. Fi Loans works out the principal, interest and any charge in your agreement, then sends a statement and a secure payment link. Its rate policy lists no preclosure fee. After you pay, the NOC should reach your email within 15 working days.

Will Fi's shutdown hurt my credit score?

Not by itself. Fi Loans says it keeps reporting your loan and repayments to the major credit bureaus every month. What hurts is a missed EMI, so keep your autopay account funded. If a payment bounces, Fi Loans sends a payment link within 24 hours, and bounce and late charges apply.

Sources: Fi Money home page, loans page, contact page, terms and privacy policy, November 2026; Fi grievance page as archived in March 2026; Google Play listing for Fi Money as archived in January 2026; Fi Loans (Stock Guardians) website, FAQs, complaints page and interest rate policy, November 2026; LenDenClub list of lending service providers, November 2026; RBI list of registered NBFCs as on 30 September 2026; RBI list of banks in India, November 2026; RBI press release on Innofin Solutions, August 2024; TechCrunch, March 2026; Inc42, February and May 2026.

Fi Money Loan App Real or Fake? Real, but It No Longer Lends