SMEcorner raises $30 Mn in mixed round of equity and debt

SMEs-focused digital lending platform SMEcorner has raised $30 million in a mixed round of equity and debt led by private equity firm Paragon Partners.

While Paragon invested $10.5 million, founder Samir Bhatia, existing investors Quona Capital, Accion Venture Lab, and some high net-worth individuals also participated.

The new funding round, which marked the closure of the Series B round, has come after a gap of 12 months.

Previously, it had raised Rs 90 crore in a mixed round of equity and debt led by Quona Capital in March 2019,

The Mumbai-based SMEcorner would deploy the new capital to reach over 20,000 new customers and is aiming to grow its loan book to Rs 1,500 crore by the end of this financial year, said the company through a press statement.

Launched in 2014, SMEcorner offers quick access to business loans to micro, small & medium enterprises (MSME) and runs two products under its portfolio-unsecured business loans and loans against property.

While its unsecured business loan facilitates hassle-free unsecured loans up to Rs. 30 lakhs to small retailers including readymade garment stores, chemists, Kirana stores and food outlets, its second product provides loan against property up to Rs. 1 crore for a tenure of up to 10 years.

The firm has deployed machine learning, data science, and artificial intelligence to provide services in a quick time.

With an average ticket size of Rs 6 lakh, the company offers loans at interest rates of 19-26 percent depending on the size of loans.

SMEcorner, which pivoted to become an NBFC from a marketplace model in February 2018, has about Rs 400 crore as assets under management.

Currently present in 15 cities including Mumbai, Pune, and Delhi, the company claims to have served more than 8,500 customers while disbursing loans in excess of Rs 550 crore to date.

Lendingkart, Capital Float, IndiaLends, OfBusiness, and ZipLoan compete with SMEcorner in this space.