Singapore’s FinAccel FinTech Lands $90M To Grow Credit Lending App

Singapore-based FinAccel has raised $90 million in a funding round led by Asia Growth Fund (a joint venture between Mirae Asset and Naver) and Square Peg. Singtel Innov8, TMI (Telkomsel Indonesia), Cathay Innovation, Kejora-InterVest, Mirae Asset Securities, Reinventure and DST Partners also participated in the “oversubscribed” funding round — one of the largest for a FinTech startup in Southeast Asia.

The funding will be used to grow FinAccel’s credit lending app Kredivo, and develop additional financial services. The company said it has raised more than $200 million in debt and equity in 2019, and has raised $140 million in equity to date.

FinAccel’s core product is Kredivo, which has more than 1 million customers, and is growing by 300 percent each year, said Akshay Garg, CEO of FinAccel, in an interview. He explained that Kredivo looks at a range of data points — including the kind of smartphone model a customer is using, and the apps they have installed on it — to decide whether to approve a loan.

“Basically, what we’re doing is almost like creating a user profile about the user using a combination of different data signals that come from the existing credit bureaus, the telcos, the eCommerce accounts, the bank accounts and the users themselves,” he said. “All of that creates a 360-degree overview of the customer that helps us determine the risk factors, and decide whether to issue the credit.”

Kredivo is cautious, currently approving only about one-third of received applications. The startup is also working on other financial services, including low-interest education and healthcare loans.

Jikwang Chung, managing director of Mirae Asset Capital (the strategic investment arm of Mirae Asset), said FinAccel is one of the leading companies in Southeast Asia to “combine a strong technology DNA with top-tier risk management, and a bold vision of financial inclusion.”