Australian Private equity firm LeapFrog Investments has led a A$35m funding round in Mumbai-based Auxilo Finserve that gives education loans to students aspiring to study in India and abroad.
Leapfrog invested $30 million with the balance coming in from Auxilo's existing investors Trifecta Leaders Fund-I and Xponentia Opportunities Fund-II.
Stewart Langdon, partner at LeapFrog Investments said that
"This is our first investment in education. It's a business that blends our core theme of financial inclusion not only by giving out loans but also helps people get access to education, which is tremendously important,", told Mint.
“We like businesses that are growing very fast and making an impact. Auxilo is enabling some 10,000 people to go overseas this year and achieve their dreams - so it is high growth and high impact. For all those reasons, we are excited about Auxilo"
Investment Growth
He also emphasized LeapFrog’s broader investment strategy in India:
"There are two dimensions to what we are looking to do in India - we have a new A$100m fund which is looking at financial inclusion, healthcare and climate action!
Since 2018, it has provided education loans to over 12,000 students, across more than 1,100 universities and education institutes in more than 30 countries.
The company has also provided finance to over 170 educational institutes for their infrastructure expansion and working capital requirements.
In the next 5 years, the company aims to disburse $5m ₹25,000 crore to more than 150,000 students for higher education, skilling, and executive courses, both in India and abroad.
The Mumbai-based education lender said its loans grew at a 75% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from FY21 to FY24, reaching ₹2,878 crore as of 31 March, 2024. Growth in its disbursements is being driven by the rising demand for higher education, particularly from students in smaller cities, who aspire to study abroad, especially in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, or STEM, fields.
India's diaspora sends back $111 billion in annual remittances—the largest globally—and plays a crucial role in the domestic economy.
There could be a brilliant synergistic alliance between BSI Learning - who are upskilling Indian students in accredited Australian Diplomas and Auxilo - I am looking forward to connect them !
From Founder of Leapfrog Andrew Kuper
Source Article from mint
No comments:
Post a Comment