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Micro-enterprise lender Aye Finance has raised Rs 310 crore in a Series F round led by the UK’s development finance institution British International Investment (BII). The Waterfield Fund of Funds and Aye’s existing shareholder A91 Partners also participated in this round.

With the latest infusion, Aye Finance has raised a total of Rs 1,000 crore in equity. Avendus Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor for Aye Finance in this transaction.

The company has an Asset Under Management (AUM) exceeding Rs 3,600 crore.

“There are over 64 million MSMEs in India and only 11% of micro-enterprises have access to formal credit. Therefore, I am thrilled that through partnering with Aye, we are not only helping to bridge this gap but also enabling micro-entrepreneurs and their employees to grow their businesses and incomes,” Gaurav Malhotra, Director for Financial Services, British International Investment, said.

“Our investment in Aye Finance underscores our commitment to back companies that have a strong development impact philosophy and promote financial inclusion for India’s underserved groups. The team from Aye stands out for its dedication and experience in offering tech-enabled financing solutions with high potential for scalability,” Malhotra added.

Established in 2014, Aye Finance offers unsecured small-ticket business loans to micro-enterprises. In March 2014, Aye disbursed its first loan to a micro-entrepreneur in the ladies’ shoe manufacturing cluster in Delhi. The entrepreneur, who had a setup of six workers, had taken no loans from any formal bank or NBFC before.

Aye Finance is backed by CapitalG, Elevation Capital, Light Rock, Alpha Wave, A91 Partners, and MAJ Invest. Notably, in December 2022, it secured $10 million in External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) from responsAbility Investments AG, based in Switzerland.