In our How I Manage My Money series we aim to find out how people in the UK are spending, saving and investing money to meet their costs and achieve their goals.
This week we speak to Jinesh Vohra, 41, who lives in Hertfordshire with his wife, 41, an accountant, and their two sons, aged eight and five. Entrepreneur Jinesh runs a business called Sprive and secured an investment from three Dragons on the BBC television show, Dragons’ Den.
He takes £100,000 a year as a salary and is not adding money to savings or investments. Jinesh is very concerned that more people will be paying off mortgages in later life.
Monthly budget
My income: I take £100,000 from my business. I am the chief executive of the company and founded it. The pay increase is recent.
My monthly outgoings: Our mortgage has been paid off. Groceries, £700; council tax, £350; gas and electric, £220; water, £360; broadband, £70, mobile phones, £100; subscriptions like Netflix and Disney, £100; insurance policies including life insurance, £180; car fuel, £160; public transport, £100; eating out and takeaways, £400 to £500; gym, £300; day trips, £300 to £400. I am not adding money to savings or investments. I add a small sum to a pension via my business each month.
My dad came to the UK from India with £5 in his pocket. He started off doing all sorts of jobs, including cleaning toilets. Later on he had his own accountancy firm. He was always good with money and made me understand how important it was to avoid buying things you couldn’t afford.
After studying economics at university, I got a graduate job at Goldman Sachs. In 2005, I started off in the operations division before moving to the risk department. Over the years, my salary increased from £35,000 to £100,000 a year.
I chose to leave Goldman Sachs in 2018 as I knew I wanted to focus on setting up my own business. It was a big decision but you only live once so I took the plunge. The idea for my business came from my experience with my own mortgage. I remember looking at the mortgage document and seeing how much interest we would be paying on it throughout the lifetime of the mortgage. It was eye-watering.
My wife and I decided we wanted to get the £330,000 mortgage on our five-bed £440,000 home paid off as quickly as possible while I was still at Goldman Sachs. We did this aggressively within four years. We effectively lived on one salary and avoided unnecessary spending. It was a relief to get the mortgage paid off and took the pressure off us financially. If we still had a mortgage I don’t think I’d have been able to set up my business.
After setting up Sprive, an app helping people pay off their mortgages faster and save on interest, I had no salary for four years. I now take £100,000 from it a year. Before this I was on £35,000 a year. The business makes money in two ways. Every time someone shops via the app we get paid by the merchant. If a customer remortgages via us, we also get a fee.
It concerns me that many older people will be paying off their mortgage into their seventies and beyond. If you still have a mortgage in later life you can’t really save any money. Overpayments for mortgages can be complicated and I believe the process should be less painful and much simpler.
I was on Dragon’s Den earlier this year and secured a £50,000 investment from three Dragons for Sprive. We filmed the episode last year and it aired in February 2026. I was in the studio for seven hours and it was an intense day. I was in front of the Dragons for an hour and a half and they really know their stuff. To get three Dragons was beyond what I was expecting. Their influence and backing has been excellent for the business.
I am not adding any money to savings or investments but plan to start doing this again soon. My savings total £13,000. I didn’t pay myself for four years and was then on £35,000 a year, which was what I earned when I was 20.
So, adding money to savings was a no-go for a long time. Getting a business up and running has taken longer than I thought. It’s not for the fainthearted and I work longer hours than I did at Goldman Sachs. I work seven days a week.
I add the minimum amount to a pension via my business, but built up a healthy pension pot from my 14 years at Goldman Sachs. I can’t see myself retiring as I love working and would get bored if I didn’t do anything. I would struggle on the state pension alone and think people should build up their own savings and investments.
I’m more motivated by legacy than money. I want to inspire my boys and make them believe that anything is possible.
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