Trade finance platform, Vayana Network raises Rs 114 crore as part of its Series C funding from International Finance Corporation (IFC) and PayU, the payments and fintech business of Prosus. The startup had raised Rs 283 crore in November ’21 from Marshall Wace, March Capital, Chiratae Ventures, CDC group, Jungle Ventures and family offices in India and abroad. The recent funding takes the total to Rs 397 crore.
Ram Iyer, founder and CEO of Vayana Network, said, they would be launching the Vayana ITFS (International Trade Finance Services) platform at GIFT City (Gujarat), which will enable exporters and importers to access the international trade finance facilities at competitive rates. “Vayana ITFS will be launched by end of Q1FY23,” Iyer said.
As the platform is located at GIFT City SEZ, it would open up the market to any bank or financial institution anywhere in the world. Global lenders would be able to bid for loans on the platform and lead to SMEs getting loans at a lower cost of around 12% per annum on the ITFS platform compared to the 18-36% interest they pay at present.
“To have the backing of global investment firms and financial institutions is a strong endorsement of our commitment to democratise small businesses and making them credit ready,” Iyer said.
Wendy Werner, India country head at IFC said by supporting the rapid growth of a key player in India’s digital supply chain finance infrastructure, IFC would contribute towards increased data and financial integration, enabling better assessment of risk and provision of tailored financing.
Vijay Agicha, global head of strategy and growth at PayU said both the companies wanted to democratise SMEs’ access to finance through technology. The collaboration would lead to multiple synergies with PayU’s merchant ecosystem that included the transaction platform and SME lending portfolio, he said.
Vayana also plans to use the funds to build products focused on helping MSMEs manage their working capital efficiently and sourcing trade finance at the most affordable rates. Vayana has to date enabled finance of over $10 billion in the country and processed over two million transactions across 600 cities and 1,400 pin codes. Vayana’s FY22 disbursals crossed the Rs 30,000 crore mark. There are 17 banks and NBFCs on its platform with six more joining soon. Vayana is also one of the largest GST Suvidha Provider in the country, facilitating, GST, e-way bills and e-invoices for corporates and lakhs of SMEs.
from | The Financial Express https://ift.tt/qnpRTU1
https://ift.tt/KYGLC5f Anish Mondal
Comments
Post a Comment