Exclusive: Digital Lender axio Raises $6 Mn Debt From Alteria Capital

Bengaluru-based digital lender axio (formerly known as Capital Float) has raised $6 Mn (about INR 50 Cr) debt from venture debt fund Alteria Capital. 

As per axio’s regulatory filings, the startup issued 5,000 debentures to Alteria Capital to raise the funding at an interest rate of 13.85%.

The startup confirmed the development with Inc42 and said that the debt would be used to provide loans to its customers. 

axio is the brand name of CapFloat Financial Services Private Limited, a non-banking finance company (NBFC) registered with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The platform offers pay later, personal credit and money management services. Through the platform, customers can take loans of INR 30,000 to INR 4,00,000, as per its website. 

axio claims to have served over 15 Mn customers to date, including 9 Mn credit customers. It claims to have supported over 3,000 merchants. The platform has partnered with major brands such as boAt, Mamaearth, upGrad, Amazon, ixigo, among others. 

Founded in 2013 by Gaurav Hinduja and Sashank Rishyasringa, axio last raised $50 Mn in equity funding led by Lightrock India, Peak XV (formerly known as Sequoia Capital India), Ribbit Capital, Creation Investments and Dinesh Hinduja Family Office in 2021. The funding round also saw participation from Nubank’s David Velez, CRED’s Kunal Shah and Pine Lab’s Amrish Rau.

axio then said it would use the funding to strengthen and scale the platform and expand its partner ecosystem. 

The startup, which counts marquee names like Elevation Capital (formerly SAIF Partners) and Amazon among its investors, competes with the likes of Vivitri Capital, and Aye Finance among others.

It is pertinent to note that debt funding has picked up pace in the country’s startup ecosystem over the last two years amid the ongoing funding winter.