Consumer Lending Platform Niro Bags $11 million in its Series A

Niro, an embedded consumer-lending platform, has marked the close of its Series A funding round at $11 million through a mix of equity ($8.5 million) and debt ($2.5 million). The startup aims to expand its partner footprint, product offerings and risk analytics capabilities and bolster its technology layer, the company said in a statement.

According to a statement from the business, a group of investors, including Elevar Equity, GMO Venture Partners, Rebright Partners, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance VC, and others, participated in the round of equity fundraising.

Commenting on the announcement, Aditya Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO, Niro said, “Sankalp and I are extremely humbled and excited to share news of this fundraiser. Raising capital, especially in this environment, is a testament to the success of the Niro thesis, which has seen rapid and real validation in a concise period.”

The embedded lending platform used by the Bangalore-based fintech startup, co-founded by Aditya Kumar and Sankalp Mathur, enables consumer internet platforms to offer tailored credit options. Niro received $3.5 million in a seed investment round headed by Elevar Equity in October 2021. Along with R. Ramaraj and Aseem Dhru, other participants in the round were Kunal Shah (Cred), the Patni Family Office, and others.

Niro has partnered with consumer internet companies

Since its establishment, Niro has collaborated with numerous consumer internet businesses, including Snapdeal, Quikr, Housing.com, and others. With a monthly origination run rate of over 60 crores, the company has disbursed loans totaling more than 300 crores across more than 200 Indian locations.

Jyotsna Krishnan, Managing Partner, Elevar Equity, said, “Niro has demonstrated tremendous growth in a short time along with achieving robust risk metrics, near zero CAC, and in-depth partnerships. This model is unique in its effectiveness and is well poised to scale with this round of infusion – we see Niro well on its way to making a significant dent in a market of millions of underserved customers looking for thoughtful credit opportunities to meet their aspirations.”

Niro equips platforms to engage with and add value for their end users by offering tailored credit options, boosting platforms’ income.

Ryu Muramatsu, Founding Partner of GMO VenturePartners, said, “As GMO, we believe in the founders with solid execution capabilities and a genuine dedication to problem-solving. Aditya and Sankalp, serial entrepreneurs in the space, have demonstrated credentials and founder-market-fit to a great extent.”