Validus announced that it has secured its first tranche of funds in a Series C-1 round with new, key strategic investors NongHyup Financial Group, NorinChukin Bank, Aizawa Asset Management and Lotte F&L Singapore.
Validus’ early investors – Vertex Ventures SEA & India, Vertex Growth Fund, FMO and VinaCapital Ventures – from previous fundraising rounds were also “amongst the investors participating in this Series C-1 up-round, signaling continued confidence in the company’s results, growth trajectory and expansion plans.”
Validus Co-founder and Group CEO Nikhilesh Goel says:
“Against the backdrop of a challenging macroeconomic and fundraising environment, Validus has continued to deliver quality growth, and we’re seeing positive upward trends across all key performance metrics – loan book size, revenue and profitability – even as we keep a tight lid on operating expenses.”
Nikhilesh adds:
“As a group, we have proven that we have a clear path to profitability, and we’re on track to breakeven by 2024, with individual markets progressively achieving this milestone. We’re heartened to have the support of our new and existing investors, and the new funds will be directed towards further product and services development, with a focus on enabling small businesses with faster and more convenient digital financing solutions.”
Kijung Kwon, Managing Director at NH Absolute Return Partners comments:
“We like Validus’ unique business model as an SME lending platform since they have been creating value to SMEs that are playing in the supply chains of the conglomerates and public companies in the region. Validus has been successfully showing sequential loan growth as well as soundness of loan portfolio which is not easy to achieve”, and he adds “our group anticipates the potential opportunities for cooperation in the lending business in Southeast Asia.”
Hiroki Kawabata, Senior Manager, Digital Innovation Division, NorinChukin Bank says:
“Validus has been in the forefront of providing full-fledged digital financing service to underserved SMEs in Southeast Asia, enabling better access to capital and financial solutions, and driving financial inclusion across the region. We are thrilled to announce our investment in Validus and excited to work with the strong team and embark on our collaboration going forward.”
Genping Liu, Partner, Vertex Ventures SEA & India says:
“The SMEs in Southeast Asia form the backbone of the economy, yet business owners constantly face critical issues such as a lack of access to credit and liquidity issues. Validus has been leading the push for financial inclusion in the region by providing much-needed financing relief to SMEs, such as collateral-free financing options and liquidity through access to a pool of investors. As one of Validus’ earliest backers, we have witnessed impressive growth and innovation from the team, including multiple strategic partnerships to expand their offerings. We are proud to be able to support Validus in their mission to be a key driver for SME growth in the region.”
Validus recently launched “its no-fee business account for SMEs and startups in Singapore, delivering productivity and cost savings for small businesses with its unlimited 1% cashback on all corporate card spend, zero fee FX services, and monthly cashback on FAST payments.”
Validus Co-founder and Executive Chairman Vikas Nahata says:
“We’re building on our strong foothold in SME lending, and our leading position as a credit-led, one-stop financing solutions provider for SMEs is paying off. We are seeing strong traction on our business account with existing and new customers. Customers have given us good feedback on the simplicity of use and speed, and this is evidenced by the fact that we’re seeing extremely healthy growth in gross transaction value (GTV) within only a few weeks of our soft launch in August 2022. A clear executable vision within chosen target segments, strong team morale, and a simple yet efficient working capital solution for the underserved SMEs has helped us emerge stronger than ever.”
Validus continues “to deliver impact in its efforts to make digital financing more accessible and inclusive for small businesses.”
In recognition of its first-in-industry automated working capital product which “underwrites a loan in just one minute, using only two documents and enabled by alternative data and AI,”
Validus also announced “the appointment of Vishal Shah as Group Chief Operating Officer. Vishal joined Validus in January 2022 as President of Emerging Markets.”
In his new capacity as Group COO, his expanded responsibilities “include the Group’s business performance, as well as Product & Innovation, Risk and Data & Analytics.”
Since its establishment in 2015, Validus has “disbursed more than USD 2 billion in loans to small businesses in Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand.”