Finwego raises $1.7 mn from SAIF Partners, others

Fintech venture Finwego Wednesday said it has raised USD 1.7 million (about Rs 11.84 crore) from SAIF Partners along with a group of HNIs and angels in a fresh round of funding.

The seed round will be utilised for expansion, growing a profitable book and strengthening tech and data infrastructure, a statement said.

Incubated at the Harvard Innovation Labs, Finwego delivers tech-enabled lending products to stakeholders in the school ecosystem, including management, parents, teachers and vendors. It is currently operational in Tamil Nadu.

The company plans to apply for an NBFC licence and will soon expand to other parts of the country, the statement said.

Finwego has already on-boarded over 200 schools in the last six months and is planning to expand to more than 1,000 schools by the end of this financial year, it added.

"Our aim here at Finwego is to deliver customised lending products for the rapidly growing private school education space in India. With the infusion of new funds, we are looking to build a high calibre team and digital infrastructure to support our robust growth plans," Finwego co-founder and CEO Shiv Vadivelalagan said.

He added that the company aims to reach out to over 10,000 schools over the next five years and establish a pan-India presence.

Currently, there are 3.5 lakh private schools in India that educate about 40 per cent of the school going students in the country, which roughly translates to 100 million students.

Finwego will also focus on doubling its headcount within 3 months from a current team of 30 members, the statement said.