Aye Finance Raises INR 310 crores in Series F Funding Led by British International Investment Founded in 2014 by Sanjay Sharma and Vikram Jetley, Aye Finance offers affordable business loans to microenterprises. To date, it has disbursed INR 8,000 crores to small businesses and has brought over 700,000 unorganised businesses into the formal lending ecosystem
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Indian micro-enterprise lender, Aye Finance, announced it had successfully infused INR 310 crores in Series F funding, led by UK's development finance institution and impact investor, British International Investment (BII).
The Waterfield Fund of Funds and A91 Partners also participated in this round, while Avendus Capital was the exclusive financial advisor to Aye Finance for the deal.
Reflecting on the funding, Sanjay Sharma, Co-founder, MD & CEO, Aye Finance shared "Aye Finance is on a growth journey and we are delighted to partner with BII who have a deep understanding of the financial services sector in India. This equity raise is a testament to the strong conviction that investors have in a high-quality franchise such as Aye. We believe there is immense potential in lending to underserved microenterprises and the fresh capital will provide a strong fillip to our compounding story. We look forward to this partnership and hope it will help us achieve new heights."
Founded in 2014 by Sanjay Sharma and Vikram Jetley, Aye Finance offers affordable business loans to microenterprises. To date, it has disbursed INR 8,000 crores to small businesses and has brought over 700,000 unorganised businesses into the formal lending ecosystem.
"There are over 64 million MSMEs in India and only 11 per cent of micro enterprises have access to formal credit. Therefore, I am thrilled that through partnering with Aye, we are not only helping to bridge this gap but also enabling micro BIZ Experiencess and their employees to grow their businesses and incomes. Our investment in Aye Finance underscores our commitment to back companies that have a strong development impact philosophy and promote financial inclusion for India's underserved groups. The team from Aye stands out for its dedication and experience in offering tech-enabled financing solutions with high potential for scalability," shares Gaurav Malhotra, Director for Financial Services, British International Investment.
Aye Finance's offerings include quasi mortgage loan, hypothetical loan, and add-on loan (ranging from INR 50,000 to 1,000,000 to MSMEs with annual turnover between INR 10 lakh and one crore.) While the latest valuation is not disclosed, the micro-lender was valued at USD 250 million in the Series E round back in June 2020.
At present, it has over INR 3,600 crores of Asset Under Management and was reported to have delivered INR 80 crores of PAT in the first six months of FY24.
