Philippine-based tech-enabled SME lender ProCredit has raised $4.1 million (about P229 million) in what is one of the country’s biggest pre-Seed funding rounds, according to an announcement.
The round was led by early-stage investor Integra Partners and participated by a host of investors, including the Menardo Jimenez Family Office, M Venture Partners, Cento Ventures, Gobi Partners, through the Gobi-Core Philippine Fund, and several local angels.
ProCredit is a tech-enabled SME lender started by a senior founding team with over 50 years of combined emerging markets SME-lending experience, having held senior credit roles at Citigroup, Standard Chartered, ANZ, and the Asian Development Bank.
Founded by banking veteran Adnan Agha, who is the current CEO, the startup aims to become one of the largest SME lenders in the Philippines, employing a credit-first client engagement model, rules-based underwriting, and portfolio management architecture.
“Our unique value proposition is built on the foundation of leveraging advanced technology and the deep domain expertise of the founders to offer rapid, accurate, and risk-adjusted financing solutions tailored to the nuanced needs of SMEs,” the company said on its website.
With the fresh funds, ProCredit said it will expand its loan book through organic and inorganic growth and raise additional capital later this year. It also aims to expand into the banking sector, leveraging its founder’s experience managing lending operations in Asia, Africa, and the US.
The startup clarifies that it does not operate an online lending platform and does not accept, originate, or process loan applications and approvals online.
Instead, loans are managed by team members based in its Makati office through face-to-face interactions and physical transmission of documentation.
Christiaan Kaptein, managing partner at Integra Partners, said ProCredit plays a significant role in providing improved access to credit to the Philippine economy’s most important sector, the SMEs.
“We rarely see such an experienced and thoughtful founding team position against such a large, underserved market opportunity,” he stressed.
About 8 in 10 formal loans are channeled to large companies in the Philippines, leaving 15 million SMEs and workers with little access to traditional finance, said Mayank Parekh, founding partner at M Venture Partners.
“We are proud to support the ProCredit team in their mission to unlock financing for underserved SMEs,” he added.