SmartCoin, a fintech startup which fulfils your urgent cash needs, raises $2mn funding

SmartCoin is a consumer micro-lending platform focused on the vast underserved middle/lower-income segments in India

Bangalore-based fintech startup SmartCoin has raised $2 million in pre-Series A funding from a top Chinese seed-stage investor Accion Venture Lab.

Unicorn India Ventures, an existing investor in the company, along with ISME ACE, a fintech accelerator based in Mumbai, also participated in the round.

SmartCoin plans to further invest in technology and grow its team as it continues with its expansion plans, with an aim to cover a much larger customer base.

The company has earlier raised seed funding from Unicorn India Ventures.

SmartCoin was started in 2016 by IIT/IIM alumnus Rohit Garg, Amit Chandel, Vinay Kumar Singh, and Jayant Upadhyay, who comes with around a decade of work experience across finance and technology domains.

SmartCoin is a consumer micro-lending platform focused on the vast underserved middle/lower-income segments in India. It lends small-to-mid-sized ticket loans to mobile users after building a SmartCoin credit score.

The firm’s proprietary credit underwriting models are based on machine learning and advanced data science over vast amount of traditional and non-traditional variables.

The startup is already working with several partners for disbursing loans.

Rohit Garg, Co-founder and CEO, SmartCoin, said: “We have seen a sharp uptick in growth over the past year and have successfully disbursed over 50,000 micro loans. More importantly, we have been able to open credit access for people who were not able to tap the formal channels and were otherwise dependent on personal networks and loan sharks. With this round, we expect to grow the momentum and further scale 10X over the next six to 12 months. Having specialists as investors, who are passionate about micro-lending, on board will only help us cover more ground not only in India but globally too.”

Accion is a global nonprofit which aims to create a financially inclusive world, with a pioneering legacy in micro-finance and fintech impact investing. Its catalyses financial service providers to deliver high-quality, affordable solutions at scale for the three billion people who are left out of – or poorly served by – the financial sector.

For more than 50 years, Accion has helped tens of millions of people through its work with more than 90 partners in 40 countries. .