InPrime raises $3M led by Matrix Partners India

‍Bengaluru, Tuesday, 16th January , 2024: InPrime Finserv, a tech led NBFC, has raised $3 million in a Series A round led by Matrix Partners India. The round also saw participation from existing investors, InfoEdge Ventures, Titan Capital, and Kettleborough VC. The funds will be deployed to broaden the company’s geographical presence, grow the team across risk, engineering, analytics & sales, develop digital channels & credit scoring models and expand its loan portfolio.
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InPrime aims to revolutionize the lending experience for the prime segment of customers within the informal economy by providing tailored and relevant credit products. Its unique hybrid model, built on the 'India Stack,' seamlessly integrates digital footprints from credit bureaus, bank accounts and other sources, along with comprehensive on-field assessments. This approach enables a precise evaluation of customers' needs, financial capacity, creditworthiness, and risk profiles. Beyond underwriting, InPrime strives to empower customers holistically by offering diverse repayment channels, encouraging self-service and promoting financial independence.

Approximately 80% of the Indian population is a part of the informal economy, contributing roughly 40% to the country's GDP. As a result of favourable government and market interventions over the years, a prime layer has emerged within the informal economy, comprising of forward-thinking households with diverse income sources, impressive credit history, and a readiness to adopt digital and financial tools to improve their lives. An estimated 50 million such households exist in India, with an underlying annual credit demand of approximately Rs. 5 lakh crores. Currently, this demographic relies on financial inclusion products such as microfinance, gold loans, two-wheeler finance, among others. However, due to the absence of products specific to their needs, they depend on multiple lenders resulting in a fragmented and inadequate experience. Inprime strives to bridge this gap.

InPrime was established in December 2021 by Rajat Singh, Manish Raj, and Sneh Thakur, former members of the leadership team at Ujjivan SFB, a prominent Small Finance Bank in India. With over a decade of banking expertise, each co-founder has held leadership positions across microfinance, rural banking, branch banking, strategy, credit underwriting, credit risk and collections.

Rajat Singh, Co-founder and CEO, InPrime, said, "India's ambitious target of achieving a $5 trillion economy by 2030 necessitates the informal economy to grow in tandem with the formal sector. InPrime is dedicated to addressing the escalating credit demand within the informal economy, facilitating their contribution to India's growth story. With the ongoing digital revolution in India, our objective is to provide these customers with superior products and services, ushering in a technology-led financial inclusion 2.0 for informal economy customers at scale."

Avnish Bajaj, Founder and Managing Director, Matrix Partners India, said, “A core part of India’s economic growth is driven by small and medium businesses in the informal sectors of ‘Bharat’. InPrime’s objective of serving this sector with tailored products to help them be part of the $5T and then $10T Indian GDP is incredibly inspiring and necessary.  Led by Rajat, the InPrime team with co-founders Sneh and Manish has all the skills necessary to build a large financial services business and it is a privilege to partner with them on this journey. We are excited to support their mission of empowering small businesses and contributing to digital nation building."

About InPrime Finserv:

InPrime Finserv, a brand under STK Credit Private Limited, an NBFC headquartered in Bangalore, specializes in serving the "Prime" segment within India's informal economy. These forward-thinking households are embracing a digital transformation while maintaining a proven credit and financial track record spanning several years. InPrime adopts a hybrid lending approach, blending traditional and modern practices centered on data, digital, technology, and innovation to generate superior financial and non-financial value.

About Matrix Partners India:

Founded in 2006, Matrix Partners India invests in companies targeting the Indian consumer and enterprise market and has invested in several category-leading companies such as Razorpay (Payments), Five Star Business Finance (SME Lending), OneCard (Mobile-first credit card), Ola (Mobility), Ola Electric (Electric Vehicles), Dailyhunt (Local language platform), OfBusiness (B2B commerce, fintech), Oxyzo (Tech-enabled smart financing), Captain Fresh (B2B seafood marketplace), Country Delight (D2C dairy & fresh foods brand), GoKwik (E-commerce enablement platform), Jupiter (Neobank), MoEngage (Customer engagement platform), Mswipe (Mobile POS), Stanza Living (Tech-enabled student housing platform) and Zupee (Skill-based gaming) among others. Matrix Partners India has advisory offices in Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai. Further information is available at www.matrixpartners.in. To know more about our investment philosophy & ideologies, check out the #MatrixMoments podcast series.