Aye Finance raises USD 10 Mn from B.V and MicroVest Fund

Aye Finance has announced raising funds worth USD 10 million in debt funding from leading global impact investment managers- Triple Jump BV and MicroVest Funds, through the issuance of Non-Convertible Debentures.

With the recent funds raised, Aye is gearing up to bolster its lending portfolio and offer affordable business loans to a larger number of microenterprises in India. This transaction was syndicated and executed by Northern Arc Capital.

Micro enterprises are at the bottom of the MSME hierarchy of businesses and Aye's mission is linked to raising this financially excluded sector and bringing it into the folds of organized finance.

The MSME lender has designed its acquisition and credit assessment processes that mirrors the comfort of the micro entrepreneur, and is fast emerging as the leader in micro lending space having disbursed over Rs. 800 crores to over 65,000 customers.

"These combined methods help us focus on the structural challenges of lending to micro businesses, who often do not maintain formal books of accounts, while reducing the possibility of credit losses in our portfolio. This has allowed us to cater to the credit needs of this underserved albeit creditworthy sector. And the confidence global investors like Triple Jump and MicroVest instill in us by offering us funds for on-lending further strengthens our resolve to transform micro enterprise lending in India," said MD and founder Aye Finance, Sanjay Sharma.

"These micro and small sized businesses have outgrown microfinance and are often overlooked by banks. We are happy to support Aye Finance in its growth," said Freek Kortekaas, Regional Manager Asia, Triple Jump.

"We are confident in Aye Finance's management team's ability to continue scaling the organization, which will enable the firm to serve even more small businesses in India," said MicroVest's Chief Investment Officer, John Beckham.

Earlier last month, Aye Finance became the first finance company to receive equity investment from CapitalG (formerly Google Capital). It received funds worth USD 21.5 million in Series C equity from the venture capital fund owned by Alphabet Inc. as well as its exiting investors SAIF Partners and LGT.

--ANI