Invoice discounting platform KredX, operated by Minions Ventures Pvt. Ltd, has raised $26 million (approximately Rs 184.32 crore at current exchange rates) in its Series B funding round led by US-based Tiger Global Management.
The company will use the funds for team expansion and enhance its product development apart from building its intellectual property portfolio and strategic acquisitions, KredX said in a statement.
The Bengaluru-based company, which was founded in 2015 by Manish Kumar and Anurag Jain, helps businesses meet their short-term working capital needs by facilitating the discounting of their unpaid invoices.
It claims to have processed over five lakh invoices, helping more than 5,000 suppliers across at least 36 cities in India.
Manish Kumar, chief executive officer at KredX, said the company’s platform works closely with suppliers, corporates, and investors to make the money flow in a supply chain ecosystem more efficiently.
“A vendor is able to unlock its working capital tied-up in invoicing, in turn benefiting the associated corporate with higher efficiency,” he added.
Separately, Tiger Global partner Scott Shleifer said the firm was confident in its investment because of KredX having created an efficient and credible lending marketplace for Indian companies and institutional investors.
In 2016, KredX raised $6.25 million (around Rs 42 crore) in its Series A round of funding led by marquee investment firm Sequoia India. Prime Venture Partners also participated in the round. In March 2017, the startup acquired the New York-headquartered accounts receivable software startup Hummingbill for an undisclosed sum.
It said it would use the acquisition for enhancing its technological infrastructure on the accounts receivable side, and expand its talent pool.
Tiger Global’s bets in the Indian startup ecosystem
The investment in KredX is the latest bet by Tiger Global as it continues its spree following the end of a three-year hiatus last year.
Earlier this month, it led a $20 million (around Rs 143.26 crore) Series A funding round in the business-to-business marketplace for real estate and construction materials Infra.Market. Other investors that participated in the round were Nexus Venture Partners.
In September, it led a Series B funding round worth $23 million (around Rs 163.7 crore) in Wow! Momo Foods Pvt. Ltd, which operates and owns brands Wow! Momo and Wow! China.
The investor led a $42 million (around Rs 300 crore) Series C funding round in education-technology startup Vedantu Innovations Pvt. Ltd along with private equity firm WestBridge Capital. Tiger Global also took part in a $120 million (Rs 862 crore) funding round in financial-technology startup Cred and invested $15 million (Rs 108 crore) in INDwealth, an artificial intelligence-based wealth management venture.
