Neobank Open one hundredth Indian unicorn; IIFL leads $50-mn funding

Bengaluru-based neo-banking startup Open has raised $50 million in its Series D funding spherical led by IIFL, with participation from current traders similar to Temasek, Tiger Global and 3one4 Capital. The firm stated Monday in a press release that it was now valued at $1 billion making it the one hundredth unicorn in India.

“The funding will also help Open accelerate its existing product lines Zwitch (embedded finance platform) and BankingStack (enterprise banking solution for banks), drive global expansion and reach over 5 million customers within the next one year. The funds will also be used to strengthen the leadership team and increase the employee base from 500 to 1,000 within the year,” the corporate, additionally backed by Google and Visa, stated in a press release.

Open was based in 2017 by former PayU and Citrus Pay senior administration member Anish Achuthan, alongside together with his spouse Mabel Chacko and brother Ajeesh Achuthan. In May 2018, the corporate raised $2 million in its pre-Series A spherical from main enterprise capitalist funds and Yes Bank. While Anish is the CEO, Chacko is the chief working officer and Ajeesh the chief know-how officer of Open. The firm has a fourth co-founder Deena Jacob, who’s the chief monetary officer.

Prior to founding Open, Anish Achuthan based fee startup Zwitch, contactless cell fee startups Cashnxt Technologies and Neartivity Wireless, and cell worth added providers startup iFuturz Wireless. Speaking on the newest fund-raise, he stated: “We see a lot of synergies with IIFL, especially on leveraging the lending book, as we are getting ready to launch innovative products like revenue-based financing, early settlement, working capital loan and business credit cards to SMEs on our platform.” Open provides a neobanking platform that integrates all of the instruments utilized by small companies and integrates it with the enterprise present account. It processes over $30 billion in annualised transactions, and has raised over $140 million in funding until date.

While Open has turn into the one hundredth startup in India to realize a billion greenback valuation, it’s the 14th startup this 12 months to take action. Other distinguished startups to have turned unicorns this 12 months embrace Mamaearth, Dealshare, Lead School, Livspace, CredAvenue and Xpressbees.