Singapore based Temasek invests $15 million in neobanking platform Fi in series C round

Singaporean investment company Temasek (via V-Sciences Investments Pte Ltd) has invested $15 million in neobanking platform Fi as part of a larger Series C round, according to regulatory filings by the company.

Temasek joins in as a new investor in Fi at a time when startup funding has slowed down amidst a challenging economic environment and rising interest rates. This is Temasek's second investment in an Indian fintech startup in the past month after leading a $102 million round in FPL Technologies in July, the parent company of credit card platform OneCard.

Fi's Series C round is being led by existing investor Alpha Wave Global (formerly Falcon Edge Capital), which has already invested $45 million in the company in June. Existing investor Quiet Capital too has invested $2 million, as per the latest filings.

At the end of the round, Fi is likely to be valued anywhere between $520-565 million, up from $315 million during the company's Series B round.

According to sources aware of the fundraise, the total size of the round is expected to be around $90 million. The remaining $28 million will come in from other existing investors of Epifi.

As per the filings, Epifi registered a loss of Rs 221 crore in the financial year 2021-22. The company's operational expenses for the year stood at Rs 234 crore, and revenues at Rs 13 crore.

As per an external auditor's report in the regulatory filings, Epifi Technologies Limited i.e. Fi is expected to see losses widening to Rs 441 crore and expenses rising to Rs 563 crore in FY23 as the company focuses on growing its presence, adding more product offerings and increase hiring.

Founded in 2019 by former Google Pay executives Sujith Narayanan and Sumit Gwalani, Fi's app serves as an interface for banking services like opening and managing savings accounts and fixed deposits with Federal Bank as its banking partner.

The platform also extends co-branded debit cards and allows users to link all accounts to its app to view all balances and transactions at once.

In May, Fi introduced mutual fund investments on the platform for which it tied up with 11 asset management companies (AMCs). The company also launched a peer-to-peer lending product in partnership with Matrix Partners-funded Liquiloans.

The company had said it has one million registered users, 70 percent of which are active users. The platform sees an average of 25 transactions every month per user and is adding three lakh users every month.

In November 2021, the startup raised $50 million led by B Capital and Alpha Wave Global. Fi's other investors include Sequoia India and Ribbit Capital.

Fi competes with consumer neo banking platforms like Jupiter, Freo, and Niyo, among others. Neobanking platforms are currently unregulated. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das said on June 17 that Niti Aayog's proposal on digital bank licensing came with certain risks and that the regulator currently has no proposal on that.