[Funding alert] Financial services platform StrideOne raises Rs 250 Cr led by Elevar Equity

StrideOne, a financial services platform launched by Ishpreet Singh Gandhi and Abhinav Suri (founders of venture debt fund Stride Ventures), has raised Rs 250 crore (over $32 million) in a mix of equity led by Elevar Equity, and debt.

In a statement, the Gurugram-headquartered firm—which has been operating in stealth mode for the last six months—provides customised financial products to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and supply chain partners of startups.

For now, its offerings are focused on lending. A registered non-banking financial company, StrideOne has been able to access untapped borrower segments in a risk-efficient manner. Its credit distribution model allows MSMEs to access customised growth capital.

“Through StrideOne, we aim to go deeper into the startup ecosystem and provide financial products and services, which help in daily financial management,” said Abhinav Suri, Co-founder, StrideOne.

In the future, the company plans to add more products to address both credit and non-credit gaps for startups and MSMEs.

“We have started with credit products for the supply chain, and are investing towards building multiple offerings delivered through our technology platform launched over the year. The idea of StrideOne, and the mission of empowering MSMEs with smartly designed tailored credit offerings, is another significant shift in that direction,” he added.

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Within six months, the company acquired EzCred—a tech platform with a lending marketplace—to improve its tech offering. It plans to invest more in technology startups in 2022.

Stride Ventures has backed startups like Zetwerk, Spinny, MyGlamm, Mensa Brands, SUGAR Cosmetics, and Money View, among others.

With a team of 20 people, StrideOne—which claims to be profitable—has partnered with some of these startups to offer them its customised solutions. At present, it has 20 anchor startups as its customers and Rs 200 crore in assets under management.

“We found two people who have deep execution experience in financial services, understand the startup ecosystem well, and are very sharp in how they have designed distribution into a massive, underserved market. They have a unique vision and a super-efficient profitable distribution model that lends itself to exponential growth,” said Jyotsna Krishnan, Managing Partner, Elevar Equity.

(This story was updated to correct a factual error in the strap and first paragraph)