Drip Capital Raises $113 Mn In A Mix Of Debt & Equity

Trade financing startup Drip Capital has raised a funding of $113 Mn in a mix of debt and equity. 

While Japanese investors GMO Payment Gateway and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) infused $23 Mn in equity financing, the startup raised $90 Mn debt from International Financing Corporation (IFC) and East West Bank.

In a statement, the startup said that the capital will support its market expansion plans and help it develop new products tailored to customer needs.

Founded in 2015 by Pushkar Mukewar and Neil Kothari, Drip Capital offers digitised trade financing solutions to small and medium business (SMB) clients in India, the US, and Mexico. 

The startup claimed that it has seen its revenue quadruple over the past two years while its customer base has doubled in the period. Further, it said it has expanded its services for SMBs by integrating forex and risk analytics solutions with its core trade financing products. 

Drip Capital said that it collaborates with over 9,000 sellers and buyers across 100+ countries. Mukewar told Financial Express that the startup has financed over 1.99 Lakh invoices involving $6.5 Bn since last year. Further, he claimed that it has a user base of over 2,700. 

“In 2022 and 2023, the global trade sector faced significant challenges, including rising interest rates that squeezed margins and restricted capital access for SMBs. Despite these challenges, Drip has emerged as the preferred trade finance platform for SMBs in the US and India… We’ve achieved cash profitability and expanded our business during this period,” Mukewar said. 

Commenting on the funding, GMO Payment’s executive vice president Ryu Muramatsu said, “We are proud to have supported Drip from its inception through both equity investment and debt financing… Drip’s innovative and comprehensive solutions in digital trade finance are transforming how SMBs engage in trade. We believe Drip’s technology and proprietary underwriting are uniquely positioned to address the challenges in this space.”

Drip Capital last raised $175 Mn from investors like TI Platform, Accel, Peak XV (then Sequoia India), Wing VC, Irongrey, and GC1 Holdings in 2021.

In late 2022, the startup laid off about 20% of its 400-member workforce in a restructuring exercise. 

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