MPOWER Financing Secures $6 Mn From Zephyr Peacock; Plans To Set Up Base In India

Fintech company that provides lending solutions to international students pursuing higher education in the US, MPOWER Financing has received $6 Mn in a funding round led by PE fund Zephyr Peacock.

Other investors in the round included University Ventures, 1776 Ventures, Goal Structured Solutions, VilCap Investments, and Fresco Capital.

With the raised funds, the company plans to set up its base in India, according to an official statement.

Founded in 2014 by Manu Smadja and Mike Davis, the company works with investors and universities to lend to high-potential students. In addition to providing students with access to the financial resources necessary to attend and complete college, MPOWER builds students’ credit histories, provides them with personal finance education, and offers gateway financial products as well.

Commenting on the investment, Abhijeet Kudva, Director, Zephyr Peacock India said, “However, these loans are only available to US citizens or permanent residents. International students have to rely on scholarships and financing from home countries, and cannot avail low cost available loans in the US. Considering that most of the Chinese students fund their education through family savings, India becomes the most important market for MPower. Hence, the company plans to build local presence to cater to the huge market Indian student’s offer.”

As per an official statement, while using MPower’s platform, Indian students availing loans do not need to furnish guarantees, co-signers, or collateral and can make only small touch payments until graduation. Students can also pay for tuition and other services such as housing, meal plans, or health insurance from the assigned loan.

In February 2016, Bengaluru-based student micro-lending startup, Buddy, raised $500K from Blume Ventures, TracxnLabs and other angel investors in its Pre Series-A funding round.

Other startups in the space include Credila, BankBazaar, Quicklo etc.

This development was reported by ET.