Lagos-based Indicina has raised $3 million in its seed funding round led by Tiger Global. The funding round also saw the participation of other investors such as edtech startup Edukoya, neobank Kuda, Kippa, RV Ventures and Greycroft. The startup is currently operational in Nigeria and Kenya.
The idea for Indicina came after CEO Yvonne Johnson noticed the neglect retail and SME businesses suffered in terms of access to loans from banks. Unlike them, big companies and individuals with high net worth encountered no trouble with accessing loan services. As digital banking which focuses majorly on providing loans started to take over, Yvonne Johnson saw an opportunity that should not be wasted.
Yvonne Johnson who once worked at First Bank, one of Nigeria’s biggest commercial banks, launched Indicina in 2019 with the aim of providing credit facilities and financial analytics tools for these “neglected” businesses. Apart from First bank, the CEO also has investment banking experience working with Merrill Lynch.
Indicina can be used by lenders to carry out credit scoring and bak settlement analysis as well as accessing ML-driven financial analytics and improved insights into customers they currently do not have and allows them to derisk unsecured loans. For lenders who process applications manually, Indicina’s solution can be used to increase their volume without blowing up their loan books. “We’ve never had any balance sheet. It’s never been about offering credit for us. We want to focus on the infrastructure layer and provide good infrastructure for people to feel more comfortable. We want lenders to be better informed about the decisions around credit so they can go to market faster with their digital products. So we’ve never had a business model that included our balance sheet, which we’ve always worked with the lenders,” CEO Yvonne Johnson said.
Backers Tiger Global and Greycroft confirmed that Indicina’s unique approach to dealing with the continent’s credit challenges was what prompted them to invest. The startup’s ability to use data to solve loan eligibility challenges thrilled these investors.
Indicina currently has around 120 customers including banks and fintech. It also partners with credit bureaus and open finance platforms. The startup claims to have helped its customers process more than ₦3 billion worth of loans from 10,000 bank statements.
Indicina plans to launch a B2C offering in the coming weeks as it plans to open up its revenue streams. The startup believes that individuals will require bank statement analysis which it already provides to banks and fintechs. This offering may mirror Credit Karma’s credit and financial management platform. “We have been working with the lenders; now we want to involve consumers. So they see what the lender would see if they are going to apply for a loan,” Indicina’s CEO said.
Indicina plans to use the new funding to expand into other African territories. A statement by the company said that “It will also enable the company to reinforce its key product offerings, build more products for consumer credit recommendation, and bolster its infrastructure.”
