Westpac-backed VC fund Reinventure aims to increase its presence in Asia’s Fintech economy. Reinventure has reportedly joined a $90 million investment round for Kredivo’s owner, Indonesia’s fast-growing “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) platform.
Asia Growth Fund and Square Peg led Reinventure’s latest round for FinAccel, the parent company of Kredivo, which offers Indonesia’s residents instant credit financing options with an interest-free 30-day payback option. Customers can also opt for three, six and 12-month installments with a competitive 2.95% interest rate (per month).
The company has reportedly issued over 30 million loans since officially launching three years back. It serves a relatively large, young population in an Asian nation that has only 0.07 credit cards per capita.
Akshay Garg, CEO at Kredivo, stated:
“Access to credit is a huge problem for Indonesian millennials, and we are solving for it through convenience, transparency and fairness.”
Garg says he intends to “double down” on Kredivo’s growth and expansion plans by developing and offering new Fintech services. The total capital raised since seeding Kredivo now stands at over $200 million. Singtel Innov8, Telkomsel Indonesia, Cathay Innovation, Kejora Intervest, Mirae Asset Securities and DST Partners also took part in the round.
Reinventure’s latest investment is notably the Westpac-funded venture capital company’s third in the area, after it acquired a stake last year in India’s BNPL business Zest and Singapore-headquartered Hmlet, a co-living firm.
Rohen Sood, partner at Reinventure, noted:
“We feel there will be things to come out of these markets that will actually leap-frog developed markets.”
BNPL adoption rates have been lower in the South East Asian region when compared with Australia, where companies like Afterpay and Zip are well-established. China is also home to Alibaba Group’s Fintech subsidiary Ant Financial. However, the BNPL model is becoming increasingly popular in Asia with Kredivo’s competitors such as Indonesia’s mobile payment platforms Akulaku and Ovo, and merchants such as travel firm Traveloka and ride-hailing service provider Gojek.