(L-R) Funding Societies co-founder and group CEO Kelvin Teo and Helicap co-founder and CEO David Z. Wang
Funding Societies (also known as Modalku in Indonesia), an online lending platform for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Southeast Asia, has secured US$18 million in debt funding.
Lead investors in the round are Helicap Investments, Social Impact Debt Fund, and an unnamed Japanese financial services group.
Also Read: Samsung backs Funding Societies to drive its vision of financial inclusion for SMEs in SEA
Together with funding received from European impact investors such as Triodos Investment Management for Indonesian business loans, Funding Societies is on track to raise US$120 million in institutional debt.
Funding Societies will use the new funds for lending to deserving MSMEs, propelling its mission of enabling financial inclusion in the region.
Established in 2015, Funding Societies provides MSMEs with business financing. It harnesses the power of technology to give underserved yet creditworthy MSMEs financial access through its digital platform.
In Southeast Asia, MSMEs contribute to more than 50 per cent of each ASEAN Member State’s GDP. Still, because many lack a strong credit track record or collateral, they are often rejected for business loans by traditional financial institutions.
Funding Societies enables access to finance by using alternative data points, including but not limited to the MSME’s cash flow — its ability to repay the loan — to underwrite these loans.
Licensed in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, Funding Societies claims to have helped finance over 4.8 million business loans with over US$1.5 billion in funding in the last six years.
Also Read: SME lending during the pandemic: Is it sensible or unwise?
In December 2020, the lending startup received an undisclosed amount of investment from Samsung Venture Investment Corporation (SVIC). A few months earlier, it secured US$40 million in April.
Its other backers are Sequoia India and Softbank Ventures Asia.
Helicap is a Singapore-based alternative lending firm that provides private debt investments to accredited investors, including family offices, HNIs, impact funds, and institutional investors.
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