FinTech

Women in Tier II and III India gain financial independence through government schemes and fintech initiatives offering credit, skills, property ownership, digital literacy, and entrepreneurship support.

The fresh funding raised through a long term structured debt facility and INR 336 crore equity from EvolutionX comes alongside founder Gaurav Kumar's INR 75 crore addition, pushing his total investment past INR 330 crore.

Existing investors such as PayPal, Mastercard, Actis Pine Labs Investment Holdings, and Peak XV Partners are set to offload their shares in the OFS, along with Pine Labs co-founder Lokvir Kapoor.

The report highlighted funding trends that showed mixed performance across stages in 9M 2025. Seed Stage funding witnessed a total of USD 129M, marking a decline of 38 per cent compared to USD 208 million in 9M 2024 and 32 per cent from USD 189 million in 9M 2023.

This marks the third exit by the fund in the past year.

The fund has invested in seven Indian startups and targets 12–15 companies overall, with cheque sizes ranging from INR 5 crore to INR 18 crore.

The Mumbai-based company plans to use the fresh capital to expand its presence across new geographies and strengthen its technology and product teams.

Sridhar noted in a LinkedIn post that he intends to take time to reflect before deciding on his next move.

India's fintech sector attracted USD 889 million in funding during the first half of 2025, reflecting a 26 per cent drop from the USD 1.2 billion raised in the second half of 2024, according to market intelligence platform Tracxn.

EBITDA margins improved from 12% in 2023 to 16% in 2024, a 25% year-over-year gain.

The newly raised capital will be deployed to scale Kaleidofin's lending portfolio and enhance its proprietary technology stack, which includes credit scoring tools, middleware infrastructure, and risk services.

At the heart of a buzzing Startup Mahakumbh, Amitabh Kant, G20 Sherpa and former CEO of NITI Aayog, laid out a bold vision for India's economic future.

Venture debt deals with credit-based financing products that apply specifically to PE-VC backed early-stage startups, growth stage, or even late-stage in their trajectory.

According to some reports, the global cross-border payments market was valued at USD 181.9 trillion in 2022, and is projected to reach USD 356.5 trillion by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 7.3 per cent from 2023 to 2032.

The exit follows CreditNirvana's recent acquisition by Perfios, a prominent financial services technology company.

India's digital payment ecosystem has seen unprecedented growth, with UPI transactions surpassing 16 billion in December 2024. Maha Kumbh reflected this trend as pilgrims increasingly adopted cashless payment methods.

Borrowing patterns last year are also poised to influence habits in 2025, with Gen Z increasingly using lending solutions such as mPokket, Slice, and the like.

This integration aims to solve complex technology challenges and create next-generation AI-driven fintech and API ecosystems.

Technology is offering solutions that make lending faster, more efficient, and more accurate. New tools are helping financial institutions streamline processes, reduce risks, and provide better experiences for borrowers.

The fund aims to invest in the next generation of Indian fintech startups, with a special focus on generative artificial intelligence (AI) in the financial services space.

Previously, the Union Budget 2024-25 focused on employment, skilling, MSMEs, and the middle class