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LivFin Wins DEG as an Investor For its SME Lending Platform

The SME-focused tech-enabled supply chain fintech firm targets break-even in the third year of operations.

Mumbai / Delhi, November 03, 2020: The SME-focused tech-enabled supply chain fintech firm LivFin has won DEG – Deutsche Entwicklungs- und Investitionsgesellschaft, the German development finance institution, as an investor. The volume of the transaction amounts to Rs.35 crore. After having signed the investment agreement in December last year, New Delhi-based LivFin and DEG obtained the necessary regulatory approvals for completion.

LivFin is targeting break-even in the first three years of operations, helped by a robust business model, efficient operational frame-work and high governance standards. LivFin, promoted by the Family Office of Mr. Rakesh Malhotra (SAR Group), started operations in 2018.The company offers invoice finance solutions to SMEs through specialized and tailor made supply chain-financing loans for MSMEs & SMEs, which face a critical shortage of funding, further impacted by the effects of the pandemic.

 LivFin’s business model allows these borrowers to enter main-stream and formal banking channels.“The equity investment of DEG underlines the resilience of our business model. The equity infusion also signals the emergence of supply chain finance as a potent financial sector investment option for investors. After weathering the pandemic impact, we are now well-positioned to accelerate our effortsto address credit-under penetration in the MSME sector with our customized and differentiated offerings,” said Rakesh Malhotra, Founder, LivFin.

“The investment has come at a time when India, as the rest of the world, is still reeling under the economic impact of the pandemic. The timing of the investment also demonstrates our resilient business model, which has strongly withstood the sharp economic downturn, as well as our corporate governance standards. 

The investment will help us further strengthen our position in the supply chain-finance segment as well as expand our reach to the un-banked and under-banked segments of the SMEeco-system of the country. We look forward to working closely with DEG in our growth journey” saidRahul Chander, Co-Founder, MD & CEO, LivFin.

”Especially over the last months, it has been impressive to see how digitally enabled models with minimal physical touch points and advanced data-insights are paving the future of SME lending. LivFin’s approach to supply chain finance falls exactly in this category and we are convinced that it has the potential to catalyze the advancement of the Indian SME sector.” said Dr. Felix Schneider, DEG VicePresident FinTechs Global Markets

Despite the pandemic impact, LivFin has developed a loan book of Rs.175 crore and cumulatively disbursed over Rs.1,500 crore till date. LivFin leverages a custom tech-enabled platform which offers a seamless experience to its clients during onboarding, credit evaluation & underwriting, execution of loan documents, disbursements and collections. The company has also commenced co-lending with a few larger NBFCs, a model that they intend to grow in the future.


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