HDFC Bank Acquires Minority Stake In Fintech Startup Mintoak At $3.7 Mn

Banking major HDFC Bank has acquired a 7.75% stake in fintech startup Mintoak in an all-cash deal. Following the acquisition, the bank will be acquiring the stake at $3.7 Mn (INR 31.14 Cr). 

According to regulatory filings, HDFC Bank has been allotted 21,471 fully paid-up Compulsory Convertible Preference Shares (CCPS) and 10,538 fully paid-up equity shares at a price of INR 9,731 apiece.

The acquisition deal is subject to completion by 31st January 2023. Post this deal, HDFC Bank’s shareholding in Mintoak will be below 10% of the startup’s total share capital on a fully diluted basis and thus, would not require regulatory approval, the bank said.

The development has come a month after HDFC Bank offloaded approximately 3.21% of its stake in fintech startup Lentra. The bank sold 73,941 equity shares priced at an INR INR 7,326 apiece in the fintech startup. 

At the time of filing, HDFC Bank’s shares are trading at INR 1,662.80 on the Indian bourse Bombay Stock Exchange. 

Founded in 2017 by Raman Khanduja, Rama Tadepalli and Sanjay Nazareth, Mintoak is a Mumbai-based fintech startup. It connects commercial banks with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by enabling merchants to accept all types of payment forms.  

Mintoak also helps banks to enhance their engagement with SME merchants via digital engagement and value-added services. It clocked a turnover of INR 11.28 Cr in the financial year 2022 and previously, recorded a gross revenue of INR 1.76 Cr in the fiscal year 2021, according to filings.

In 2020, Mintoak secured $2 Mn in a Pre-Series A funding round led by Pravega Ventures. 

On the other hand, HDFC Group’s subsidiary HDFC Capital in November announced plans to back 15 proptech startups in India. 

Prior to this, banking arm HDFC Bank shared (in August) that it would infuse between INR 49.9 Cr to INR 69.9 Cr in insurtech startup Go Digit Life Insurance for an equity stake of nearly 9.94%.

In June, HDFC stated that it would be overhauling digital services and partnering with new-age tech startups to roll out services such as a payment platform for consumers. 

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