FinTech company True Balance raises USD 28 million in Series D

By Edil Corneille

Today, True Balance, a FinTech app operated by Balancehero India, the wholly owned subsidiary of Balancehero Co. Ltd. Korea, announced the raise of USD 28 million in funding from a cohort of investors including SoftBank Ventures Asia, Naver, BonAngels, Daesung Private Equity, and Shinhan Capital.

The Seoul & Gurugram headquartered FinTech, which has disbursed via its primary loan products over INR 1 billion this year to India’s underbanked, uncredited, unaccessed and financially uneducated, had previously raised USD 62 million from SoftBank Ventures Asia, Line Ventures Corporation, D3 Jubilee Partners, and a host of other global investors.

Said to have earned the trust of its users through its digital financial services, True Balance has expanded its portfolio to bring full stack financial services to low-income citizenry, making finance available for all. The company’s loan book has grown over 8 times since January 2020, capped off by their Cash Loan and Level Up Loan service – with an average ticket size of INR 1,000-15,000/-.

Opining on the funding, Charlie Lee, Founder & CEO, True Balance said, “From the day we launched, our focus was on the Next Billion Indian users. These people will continue to be at the heart of every decision-making process, every change, every pivot, every new service, or product line that we introduce in India. We will continue focusing on non-online payment users, non-credit score users, people who deserve our help, but need a way to get to it”, adding that this round would be used to fuel the company’s India expansion plans, bolstering the technology that drives the fintech player, and preparing for the next round of growth that it now foresees.

In early 2020, True Balance pivoted the business to a very strong focus on small loans across India, and post-that, while several other players are said to have got out of the loans business – especially in light of the credit crisis which has prevailed since – the company has grown from strength to strength, maintaining that responsible lending is one way of pulling the Indian economy out of the precipice COVID-19 has very precariously placed it in. The Series D investment will largely fuel Balance Hero’s mission to achieve breakeven point for their business and achieve profitability by Q2 of next year.