Shubham Housing Development Finance Co. Ltd, backed by billionaire Azim Premji’s investment firm PremjiInvest, on Tuesday, said it has raised over Rs 1,000 crore ($117.8 million) in a Series F round of funding led by Multiples Private Equity for a significant minority stake in the firm.
The round, which comprises a primary issuance of Rs 400 crore along with a secondary purchase from early investors, also saw participation from existing investors, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and British International Investment (BII).
Shubham is an affordable housing finance lender that provides home loans to lower-income families and emerging consumers across India. With assets under management exceeding Rs 5,000 crore, Shubham operates across 12 states via 160+ branches. The funds raised will be used to drive growth across its product offering and expand its footprint.
As part of the investment, Nithya Easwaran, Managing Director of Multiples, will join Shubham’s board.
Founded in 2011, Shubham Housing raised $112 million in a round led by British International Investment (BII), LeapFrog Investments, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and existing backer Premji Invest, billionaire Azim Premji’s investment firm in 2022.
PremjiInvest acquired a significant minority stake of 45% in the mortgage lender by investing around $35 million in 2017-18.
Some of Mutltiples’ other finance bets in India include India Energy Exchange, Cholamandalam, Kogta Financial, Veritas Finance, Svatantra Microfinance, Vastu Housing Finance, APAC Finance, and ACKO.
Shubham Housing Development Finance’s funding comes amid a rise in investor interest in the financing services sector.
The financial services industry, comprising banking, mortgages, credit cards, and digital payment startups, led PE-VC funding in October with total investments worth $274.5 million, or 24.5% of the total funding value in the month. The capital was raised through 11 deals. In comparison, financial services raked in $454.5 million from 18 deals in September.
Other prominent deals within financial services include digital lending platform Fibe ($90 million), non-bank lender Ambit Finvest ($83 million), non-bank lender Northern Arc ($80 million), affordable housing finance company Ummeed Housing Finance ($76 million), NBFC Vivifi India Finance ($75 million), micro-financier Annapurna Finance ($72 million), and digital lending platform mPokket ($60 million).
Shubham Housing Development Finance’s funding also comes amid a rise in megadeals, or deals worth at least $100 million. In Q3, 11 megadeals raised a total of $1.96 billion.
The top-funded startups during the third quarter included quick e-commerce startup Zepto, non-bank lender DMI Finance, mother and baby products retailer FirstCry, edtech platform Physics Wallah, and budget hotel chain startup OYO.
