Sachin Bansal’s investment arm BACQ renamed as Navi Technologies
Sachin Bansal has made a sizeable number of investments in financial services space which includes micro-finance company and fintech startups
BAC Acquisitions Private Limited (BACQ), the investment firm with focus on the financial services space founded by Sachin Bansal, Founder of Flipkart has been renamed as Navi Technologies.
In a press release, Sachin Bansal, CEO of Navi, said, “I am very pleased to announce the rechristening of BACQ to Navi, and I am sure that this will translate to better acceptance of the brand on a national scale.”
Bansal co-founded BACQ, now Navi, along with Ankit Agarwal in December 2018. Ankit has extensive experience in banking at senior positions in the treasury department across Deutsche Bank and Bank of America.
Following his departure from Flipkart, Bansal has been making investments in various startups such as Ola, Bounce, KrazyBee, to name a few.
Recently, BACQ had acquired a majority stake in Chaitanya Rural Intermediation Development Services (CRIDS), a company which runs the micro-finance institution Chaitanya India Fin Credit (CIFCPL).
Bansal has invested Rs 739 crore in CRIDS. Following the transaction he became the new CEO of CRIDS.
A Bengaluru-based micro-lender, CRIDS was founded by Anand Rao and Samit Shetty. It provides access to credit for the underbanked population. It also offers loans for two-wheelers, housing, small business and education. It has operations in five states—Karnataka, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
Besides CRIDS, Navi has also got the green channel approval for the proposed acquisition of Essel Finance Asset Management Company and Essel Mutual Fund from Competition Commission of India (CCI). Subject to final approval by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), these will also be part of the group.
Bansal has also invested in U Gro Capital, a non-bank lender, by issuing non-convertible debentures. He has also made a debt investment of Rs 50 crore in consumer lending startup, Kissht.
These investments made by Bansal provides him with a strong foothold in the financial services space where technology-led innovation is expected to be the key differentiator.
(Edited by Suman Singh)