New York-based Tiger Global Management, one of the most prolific investors in Indian startups, is in talks to acquire a minority stake in Sequoia Capital-backed invoice discounting platform KredX, said two people aware of the matter, requesting anonymity.
While details of the transaction are being worked out, Tiger could invest $20 million in KredX, said the first person.
Invoice discounting is the practice of using a company’s unpaid dues as collateral for a loan, which helps companies better manage their working capital. KredX provides a marketplace for business owners to sell, and investors to purchase invoices, where the counter party is a blue chip company. KredX also offers another product, CapEx, for large enterprises looking to raise funds for growth and capital expenditure needs, by discounting their lease/rental agreements.
Founded by Manish Kumar and Anurag Jain in 2014, it had raised a ₹40 crore Series A round in 2016 led by Sequoia, and with participation from early backer Prime Venture Partners.
Tiger declined to comment. KredX did not respond to emails seeking comment.
So far this year, Tiger has made nearly 20 investments, aggregating to about $500 million, according to investors who have worked with Tiger.
It has primarily been a growth-stage investor, coming in at Series B and C rounds, where Indian startups have traditionally faced difficulty in raising capital. Its recent investments signify a growing interest from Tiger to invest in financial services and B2B sectors. Tiger ramped up its investments significantly after August 2018, when it had made its biggest exit in India with a whopping $2.5 billion in profits during Walmart’s $16 billion takeover of Flipkart. Since then, the firm has seen the departure of its head honcho, Lee Fixel, known for his aggressive deal-making.
Fixel had spearheaded an early investment in Flipkart in 2009, following it up with another billion dollars over the years.
After Fixel announced his departure in March, Tiger’s investments have been headed by co-founder and partner Scott Shleifer. According to Forbes, some of Shleifer’s best investments have come from China, where the company exited its $200 million investment in e-commerce platform JD.com with $5 billion. Shleifer also led Tiger’s investments in the firm’s return to India after nearly three years.
Source: Mint