Lok Capital LLC, a Mauritius-based venture capital fund, has raised USD 22 million from institutional investors to fund micro-finance institutions in India.
|
|
“Lok Capital raised its first round of funds from institutional investors including CDC, FMO, KfW, and IFC. The funds will be utilised to finance micro-finance institutions engaged in rural and urban lending,” Lok Advisory Services Managing Director Vishal Mehta said.
He said with a fully functional local venture team in place, the Fund was confident of delivering support to larger number of MFIs and contribute to the overall growth of the sector.
The increased capital base will enable the venture fund to reach out to a few more MFIs than what it originally envisaged, he said.
In an earlier round, he said Lok Capital accessed capital from sector-specific institutions like Accion International and Switzerland-based ResponsAbility.
Mehta further said that raising of funds will enable Lok Capital to tap the international micro-finance expertise of its investors and provide more focused support to its MFI partners in India.
Lok Capital's portfolio currently comprises of Spandana, Janalakshmi and Satin.
Spandana is a leading MFI in the country and has operations across eight states. Janalakshmi is operating out of Bangalore and has a mandate to fulfil credit needs of the low-income urban population. Satin is based out of Delhi with operations panning across north India, he said.
Source: Sify