VentureSoul Makes First Bet Via Maiden Debt Fund, Infuses INR 20 Cr In True Balance

Marking the first deployment from its maiden venture debt fund, VentureSoul Partners has infused INR 20 Cr debt to lending tech startup True Balance.

The startup will use the funds to further expand its operations, the venture debt firm said in a LinkedIn post.

Last month, VentureSoul marked the first close of its maiden fund, which has a target corpus of INR 600 Cr, at about INR 145 Cr. 

The fund is a SEBI-registered Category II alternative investment fund (AIF) and has garnered commitments from family offices, corporates, high-net-worth-individuals (HNIs), and other investors.

True Balance is operated by Balancehero India, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korea-based Balancehero Co. Ltd. The startup began its operations in India in 2017 after obtaining the licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to provide wallet services. In 2019, True Balance received approval from the central bank to operate as a non-banking financial company (NBFC). 

It offers loans up to INR 1.25 Lakh and utility bill payment services. True Balance targets customers with credit scores of 650 and above and currently manages assets worth INR 1,100 Cr, and serves over 9 Lakh active customers.

The fintech startup competes against the likes of MobiKwik, Paytm, PhonePe, Navi, among others, in India. 

The startup clocked a consolidated net profit of INR 58.8 Cr in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23), up 17X from INR 3.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Operating revenue jumped 1.8X to INR 431.1 Cr from INR 243.9 Cr in FY22.

The development comes at a time when debt funding is at a record high, exacerbated by the ongoing funding winter and the emergence of new avenues to secure capital. The debt route also allows startup founders and other shareholders to fuel growth without diluting their stakes. 

As per Inc42 data, debt investments in Indian startups more than doubled to $576 Mn in H1 2024 from $285 Mn during the same period a year ago. 

Just days ago, agritech startup WayCool secured a debt funding of INR 100 Cr from Grand Anicut. Prior to that, edtech startup Vedantu also bagged INR 19.25 Cr in a mix of debt and equity financing from Stride Ventures.

Last month, IPO-bound adtech startup InMobi also secured $100 Mn in debt funding from Mars Growth Capital.

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