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Serum Institute chief exec, others pump more money in Svasti Microfinance

By Narinder Kapur

  • 11 Mar 2021
Serum Institute chief exec, others pump more money in Svasti Microfinance
Credit: 123RF.com

Svasti Microfinance, which focuses on women, has raised Rs 31 crore (around $4.3 million) from existing investors, it said on Thursday. 

Participants in this round include Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla, Nordic Microfinance Initiative, and the Rajiv Dadlani Group, Mumbai-based Svasti said. 

Interestingly, the infusion from Poonawalla comes exactly a month after an entity owned by him – Rising Sun Holdings – acquired a controlling stake in non-bank lender Magma Fincorp for Rs 3,456 crore. 

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Also, last year, VCCircle exclusively reported that Poonawalla had invested close to $40 million in another Mumbai-based NBFC that is part of a larger financial services group. 

Svasti said it initially raised capital from the Serum Institute CEO in 2015, adding that he has invested in every round since then. 

With this infusion, the microfinancier says it has raised a total of Rs 130 crore so far. The company was set up in 2010 by Arunkumar Padmanabhan and Narayanan Subramaniam. 

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The institution says it has a customer base of over 1.87 lakh, which it serves from 63 branches across four states, and that it has a loan portfolio of around Rs 400 crore. 

Svasti also operates a financial technology platform – SvasTech – that it says helps control and manage operational risks and costs while reducing inefficiencies. 

Other investors in Svasti include Sajid Fazalbhoy, Singapore-based Kayenne Ventures, and the Arihant Patni family. According to VCCEdge, it reported net sales and profit of about Rs 53.7 crore and around Rs 3.6 crore for the 2018-19 financial year. 

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In November 2019, the microfinancier raised $10 million (around Rs 71.5 crore) to grow business and provide exits to two early backers – Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and Bamboo Financial Inclusion Fund. 

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