Fintech Unicorn slice Secures $9 Mn From Stride Ventures In Debt Funding

After raising $50 Mn in its Series C funding round led by Tiger Global in June 2022, lending tech unicorn slice (GIPL) now secured INR 75 Cr (around $9 Mn) from Stride Ventures in a debt funding round. 

The startup has passed a special resolution to allot 7,500 non-convertible debentures (NCD) at an issue price of INR 1 Lakh per share, slice’s regulatory filing with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) showed. The debentures issued by the company are non-convertible and have an interest rate of 14.25% per annum.

A separate filing noted that the debt funding round may reach INR 300 Cr (around $35 Mn). The development was first reported by Entrackr.

The funding round comes a month after slice and North East Small Finance Bank (NESFB) announced their merger. The joint venture seeks to integrate advanced technology solutions with initiatives to promote financial inclusion at the grassroots level, an official statement noted.

slice acquired a 5% stake in Guwahati-headquartered bank for about $3.42 Mn in March.

Founded in 2016 by Rajan Bajaj, the lending tech unicorn had to pivot after the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) mandate on prepaid payment instruments (PPIs) from last year. slice used to issue credit cards with pre-loaded credit lines, which the RBI has since made impossible.

Now, slice facilitates personal loans and UPI payments via its app, even though the fintech unicorn obtained a PPI licence last December. The fintech unicorn has raised $340 Mn to date and was valued at over $1.5 Bn during its Series C round.

In FY22, slice’s consolidated net loss widened 2.5X to INR 253.7 Cr from INR 100.4 Cr in FY21. Its operating revenue jumped 4.2X to INR 283.1 Cr from INR 67.7 Cr in FY21.