Lendingkart Raises INR 75 Cr In Debt To Provide Working Capital Loans To Underserved MSMEs

Non-banking finance company (NBFC) and lending tech platform Lendingkart has raised INR 75 Cr in a debt funding round from GMO LLC and Triodos Investment Management. 

The fintech company plans to use the fresh funding to provide MSME loans across states. Credit decisions will be taken in a ‘live’ environment using its in-house loan origination engine xlr8 and zero-touch features. 

In the current round, INR 25 Cr would come from GMO LLC and the rest INR 50 Cr from Triodos via non-convertible debentures (NCDs).

“The newly infused funds will enable us to disburse working capital loans to underserved MSME customers through our platform,” said Harshvardhan Lunia, founder and CEO of Lendingkart.

“Additionally, it will help us increase our reach and service more pin codes across the country,” he added, highlighting that the company is constantly engaged in empowering MSMEs and bridging the funding gaps.

The Ahmedabad-based fintech company was set up in 2014 by former banker Lunia. Besides Ahmedabad, it has offices in Bengaluru, Mumbai and Gurugram, and offers pan-India services. 

Lendingkart has developed technology tools based on big data analysis and machine learning (ML) algorithms that help evaluate borrowers’ creditworthiness and provide other related services to lenders.

Reputed global and local investors, including Fullerton Financial Holding (a 100% subsidiary of Singapore Sovereign Fund Temasek), Bertelsmann, Mayfield India, Saama Capital, Sistema Asia, India Quotient and others have backed Lendingkart so far.

In April 2021, the NBFC-cum-lending tech platform raised $15 Mn from FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank. 

To date, the fintech firm has raised about INR 1,050 Cr in equity.

Although the company’s FY21 losses widened by 32% to INR 28.4 Cr, in its consolidated FY21 statement, Lendingkart reported a total income of INR 499 Cr, up 6% YoY.

The Lendingkart group claims to have evaluated about half a million applications, disbursing more than 1.4 Lakh loans to 1.2 Lakh+ MSMEs across 4,000+ locations. Lendingkart also claims to have disbursed more than $1 Bn worth of loans until now.

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