CredFlow Acquires Y Combinator-Backed TechBiz To Scale Up SME Offerings

Fintech startup CredFlow on Wednesday (June 7) said it has acquired Y Combinator-backed business management startup TechBiz in an all-cash deal.

While CredFlow didn’t disclose the financial details of the deal, sources told Inc42 that TechBiz was acquired for an amount under INR 10 Cr.

In a statement, CredFlow, a cash flow management platform focussed on small and medium enterprises (SMEs), said that the acquisition of TechBiz will help it grow further in the SME space. 

With the acquisition, CredFlow aims to launch its offering for Busy Accounting Software users in India and globally.

Commenting on the deal, CredFlow founder and CEO Kunal Aggarwal said, “Adding TechBiz’s expertise and technology will help us expand our reach and better serve a broader base of SME customers. Our aim at CredFlow is to provide complete financial solutions to our customers, and this acquisition is a step towards achieving our goal of becoming the default financial operating system for SMEs and expanding the user base.” 

Founded by Pratyush Sharma and Vikramaditya Patil, TechBiz helps SMEs send timely payment reminders to customers. The startup was the first to provide such an offering to the users of IndiaMART-backed Busy Accounting Software. TechBiz also featured in Inc42’s ‘30 Startups To Watch’ list in 2021.

On the other hand, Credflow, founded in May 2020, is a cash flow management SaaS platform that helps SMEs manage their finances by providing a dashboard of pending amounts by customers, sending timely payment reminders, validating invoices and negotiating discounts for early payment.

One of the primary reasons for the acquisition was the similar target audience of the platforms, the sources quoted above said. 

TechBiz’s acquisition would allow CredFlow to immediately tap its user base, they added.

While CredFlow already offers support for accounting software Tally, the startup’s cash flow management product can now run on top of another leading account management platform for small businesses. 

“This acquisition will expand our target market by ~15% into Busy Accounting Software users, who have shown higher conversion rates compared to Tally users when tested,” Aggarwal said.

The talks for the deal started four-five months ago, as per the sources.

As part of the deal, Sharma and Patil will join CredFlow’s team to assist with the transition.

However, it is not clear if Y Combinator, which invested in TechBiz through SAFE Notes, saw a return for the exit. Typically, SAFE Notes involve some form of early exit payback. However, it couldn’t be ascertained if this was exercised or available for Y Combinator in this deal.