Exclusive: Loanbaba.com gets $320K in angel funding

Lending marketplace Loanbaba.com has raised $320,000 (Rs 2.1 crore) in seed funding from an unnamed angel investor.

The funds will be utilised for technology enhancement and marketing, Sanket Hasabnis, Loanbaba.com's co-founder and CEO, told Techcircle.in.

He added that the unnamed investor is the MD & CEO of a listed infrastructure major.

Loanbaba, owned by Mumbai-based Sahas Technologies Pvt Ltd, was founded in August by Sanket and Satchit Hasabnis.

Sanket, a chartered accountant, previously worked with Transcend Services and AD's Consultancy Services. Satchit is a financial analyst who holds an MBA in finance from ICFAI. Before Loanbaba.com, Satchit worked with Caparo Financial Services, HSBC, Knox Capital Advisors and Development Credit Bank.

LoanBaba is an online portal that allows users to compare and apply for financial products such as home loans, personal loans and car loans. The startup has tie ups with NBFCs and banks.

"Our target is to facilitate loans worth Rs 200 crores by the current fiscal-end. We will also move beyond aggregation of loans in the coming months," Sanket said. The company has plans to expand into 15 cities.

LoanBaba would compete with firms such as BankBazaar, Apnapaisa, Deal4loans and other online ventures.

In July, BankBazaar.com raised Rs 375 crore ($59.1 million) in Series C funding from e-commerce giant Amazon and other investors.

India's fin-tech space has become a preferred one for venture capitalists and young entrepreneurs. There is heightened investor interest in this sector as several startups are using technology to disrupt the country's current systems of lending, borrowing, personal finance and financial inclusion.

In September, India's largest e-commerce venture Flipkart acquired majority stake in payment services startup FX Mart Pvt Ltd, which deals in electronic payments, remittance, foreign exchange and travel related businesses.