Leap Finance gets $100M in debt from HSBC's ASEAN Growth Fund

Leap Finance on Wednesday secured a $100 million debt facility from HSBC under its ASEAN Growth Fund to expand its US operations and partnerships.

Leap Finance—the student lending arm of Leap, an end-to-end study abroad platform—has funded over 5,000 students with $250 million in education loans.

It plans to use the funding to deepen its presence in India, expand its presence across the US, among other countries, and increase its university partnerships. At present, it offers its services in over 10 countries.

Leap's mission is to democratise access to global education and careers for students. With lack of financing often the largest impediment to their global aspirations, this facility will enable us to help hundreds of students make their move abroad. More importantly, in HSBC, we have a partner who for decades has been helping people and businesses open up to global opportunities. This strong alignment of vision makes me very excited about the partnership," said Vaibhav Singh, Co-founder of Leap, in a statement.

The startup offers education loans to students pursuing a post-graduate degree abroad by providing a collateral-free, USD-denominated loan product that covers the entire cost of international study. These loans are based on a student's future earning potential rather than current means.

Bengaluru-based Leap had raised $65 million in a Series E round earlier this year in a mix of primary and secondary sales led by UK-based Apis Partners. It also saw participation from existing investors Owl Ventures, Jungle Ventures, and Peak XV Partners.

Leap, which operates LeapScholar, LeapFinance, GeeBee, and Yocket, is a comprehensive international student mobility platform. Since its founding in 2019, it has raised over $400 million in equity and debt.