Exclusive: Connectabank secures angel funding

ConnectAbank.com, a lead generation and comparison portal for financial products, has raised an undisclosed amount in angel funding from Gulab & Co's Prakhar Bumb.

The Mumbai-based Rockdude Finpro Pvt Ltd, which owns and operates Connectabank.com, will use the money to expand presence in other cities and for product development, Bumb said.

Connectabank is an online marketplace that assists direct selling agents, real estate brokers, builders and chartered accountants to generate leads. The startup allows loan distributors to manage customers using its proprietary CRM solution.

Connectabank also allows retail users to check their loan eligibility and compare offers from different lenders. It deploys a web-based credit calculator and payout tracker for channels partners.

Bumb, a chartered accountant, has been with the family-owned CA firm Gulab & Co for the past four years. Bumb had previously worked with Saraswat Bank, KPMG India and other firms.

"Being from a familiar domain and having knowledge of the segment and the market potential, this (investment in Connectabank) was a 'can't miss' opportunity for me. Connectabank's product offering, along with the unique blend of online and offline space…and highly motivated and energetic founders were the other comforting factors," said Bumb.

Tarun Kumar and Gopal Dhar founded Connectabank in 2014. Kumar, an alumnus of BIT Sindri (Jharkhand) and IIM Lucknow, has over 10 years experience in the financial services domain. He has worked with companies such as UB Group, ICICI Bank & Netambit. Gopal has a post-graduate degree in risk management. In the last 11 years, he has worked with firms such as Bajaj Allianz, Bharti AXA and NetAmbit in various capacities

Abhishek Taparia, co-founder & CEO of Radix Capital Advisors, which worked as the sole financial advisor for the transaction, claims that Connectabank is in the process of 'developing innovating products for multiple channels such as builders/CAs etc in the loan distribution chain.'

Connectabank competes with the likes of ApnaPaisa.com, Paisabazaar.com and BankBazaar.com in the online financial services space.