Lendingkart acquires personal loans platform Upwards in a cash-and-stocks deal
Lendingkart, an online MSME lender, has acquired Mumbai-based fintech firm Upwards with the aim of enhancing its personal loan offering.
According to Harshvardhan Lunia, the CEO and founder of the company, the cash and stocks agreement was valued at between Rs 100-120 crore.
With the completion of the acquisition, Lendingkart, a company that specializes in providing credit to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and small businesses through its non-banking financial company (NBFC) arm, Lendingkart Finance Limited, is now eager to expand its personal loan services through the use of Upwards’s network and technology infrastructure.
Commenting on the development, Harshvardhan said, “The acquisition will give us more leeway to offer personal loans. We saw an incoming demand for personal loans from employees and contractors related to the MSMEs we offer business loans to and decided to acquire Upwards.”
According to the CEO, the latest acquisition will enhance the company’s technology capabilities and increase its size. He stated that Upwards has superior lending capabilities for its target audience and with this partnership, the company will be able to execute its plan of making it easier for customers to access personal loans.
Upwards, established in 2017 by Abhishek Soni and Nimesh Verma, provides personal loans to salaried professionals through their innovative technology platform. The platform utilizes advanced algorithms to evaluate over 500 data points from various sources to approve and distribute loans. The company, supported by investors such as India Quotient and Mayfield Fund, claims to have distributed loans worth more than Rs 500 crore.
Abhishek, Co-founder at Upwards said, “Upwards has created a strong credit product for the low-income segment. With Lendingkart’s credit, capital and distribution capability, we plan to deepen our presence across the country to bridge the massive credit gap in the personal loan market in India.”
The firm claims to have processed over 200,000 loan applications, disbursing more than 115 billion to over 160,000 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). In 2018, the company incorporated KountMoney, an online lending platform for personal loans, to enhance its technology and data analytics capabilities, as well as to create more efficient and customer-oriented products. The CEO stated that LendingKart intends to venture into the salaried loan sector in the future.
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