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Monexo — an online peer-to-peer lending marketplace — is close to roping in a “local strategic partner” to fund its growth in the Indian market, Mukesh Bubna, its Founder-CEO, has said.
The strategic partner could also be a domestic private equity fund, Bubna told BusinessLine here.
The promoters (high-profile ex-bankers and technology industry specialists) of this four month-old fintech start-up have till date pumped in capital of ₹4-5 crore in the Indian operations, Bubna said.
In its journey so far, Monexo India has, through its high-end digital platform, processed loans worth ₹24 crore with most of the applicants being salaried 25-30-year-olds.
Going forward, the Chennai-headquartered Monexo plans to start offering small and medium enterprise (SME) loans from the third quarter (July-September).
“In 2017, our aspiration is to do ₹100-crore business at both ends — lending as well as borrowing. Because we are digital, we do not want to expand in every city. Our staff can always travel to some cities if they want to do promotions,” Bubna said.
Domestic investorBubna said Monexo was not looking at foreign venture capital or a foreign private equity fund, but was closing a conversation with a domestic investor.
“We are closing a conversation with a domestic PE. That’s why I am here in India. I want money from India (with Indian colour). I want to be a responsible player in the peer-to-peer industry and my strategy will be to only pursue profitable growth,” he said.
Peer-to-peer (P2P) lending involves matching of lenders directly with borrowers through online services. In India, P2P lending is still a nascent industry with 30-odd players entering the scene in the past few years.
The Reserve Bank of India had, in April last year, come out with a discussion paper on P2P lending. However, not much has happened after that on the regulatory front.
Bubna expressed hope that the RBI would firm up final norms for the P2P lending industry in the current year itself.
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