Open Hits $1 Billion Valuation, Joins India’s Unicorn Club

Bengaluru-headquartered neo bank, Open has become the latest Indian startup to hit the valuation of $1 billion after the company secured nearly $50 million in its Series D funding. The recent announcement from Open came almost 7 months after the fintech firm raised $100 million in its Series C round which was led by Temasek.

Open has now joined India’s exclusive unicorn club. According to Techcrunch, the country now has 100 unicorns, including some of the world’s most valuable financial technology and payment companies.

Open’s Series D funding round was led by IIFL. In addition, the investment round witnessed participation from the company’s existing backers, including Tiger Global, Temasek and 3one4 Capital.

Commenting on the funding round, Anish Achuthan, the Co-Founder and Chief Executive of Open, said: “We are excited to partner with IIFL and existing investors Tiger Global, Temasek, and 3one4 Capital for our series D round. We see a lot of synergies with IIFL especially on leveraging the lending book, as we are getting ready to launch innovative products like revenue-based financing, early settlement, working capital loan and business credit cards to SMEs on our platform.”

India’s Fintech Sector

India remained one of the fastest-growing markets for global fintech companies last year. Neobanking platforms specifically gained the attention of large investors. Earlier this year, Accel and Lightrock India led the $100 million funding round of Niyo, a neo-banking platform based in India. In 2021, India’s Razorpay secured $375 million in its Series F round and received a valuation of $7.5 billion.

“Neo banks are gaining prominence as platforms to digitize banking or bank-like services for millennials and SMEs. Top-4 global neo banks are worth $100 billion and Indian fintechs have made a start through likes of Open, RazorpayX, Fi and Jupiter,” Analysts at Jefferies wrote in a report last year.

To date, Open has raised nearly $187 million.