Earlier today, leading Indonesian sharia-compliant SME lending platform ALAMI announced that it has closed a pre-series B funding round of an undisclosed amount led by East Ventures (Growth fund) alongside returning investors AC Ventures (ACV), Quona Capital, and FEBE Ventures. US-based tech investor Capria Ventures also joined the round, making the Islamic fintech firm its first direct investment in the Asia Pacific region.
Today’s deal further strengthens ALAMI’s effort to give Muslim Indonesian consumers and SMEs better access to financial products that adhere to sharia principles. The startup said in a statement that most local SMEs still struggle to build their companies in a way that is modern and competitive but still comprehensively in line with Islamic principles.
The firm’s founder and CEO Dima Djani said, “This pre-series B Round is a strong validation that investors acknowledge the positive impact ALAMI is creating in Indonesia’s market. We see the tremendous long-term potential that access to banking and sharia-compliant financing from our Hijra Bank can unlock for Indonesia’s 230 million Muslims and SMEs. We will commit more energy and resources going forward, as we see a huge and under penetrated market unfolding.”
ALAMI and underserved borrowers
As Indonesian SMEs recover from the pandemic, the largely unserved demand for working capital still stands at US$108 billion. To address the challenge, peer-to-peer lending has emerged as a revolutionary financial lending solution that is quick, convenient, and reliable.
Since its inception in 2019, ALAMI has disbursed more than US$200 million to SME projects, with a 0% rate of non-performing loans as of last month. The startup currently has more than 111,000 peer-to-peer investors involved in almost 10,000 projects across the nation focused on the surging growth of Indonesian SMEs. The company also acquired BPRS Cempaka Al-Amin (now Hijra Bank) in 2021, the only sharia rural bank in Jakarta. Early this year, Hijra Bank obtained a digital mobile banking license from the Indonesia Financial Authority.
In an uncertain macroeconomic environment, existing and new investors in ALAMI’s latest funding round showed an incredible level of trust in the company, as it provides tangible solutions to underserved Muslims and their small businesses in Indonesia.
Michael Soerijadji, Founder and Managing Partner at ACV, explained, “We have strong conviction and confidence in ALAMI, its founding team, and its mission at large. As a leading sharia-compliant fintech platform in Indonesia’s more than US$900 billion Islamic finance sector, Dima and his team have already demonstrated encouraging traction and product-market fit. We are excited to continue being a hands-on partner in creating more value for ALAMI at its next stages of growth.”
ACV is a leading Southeast Asian venture capital firm investing in early-stage startups focused on Indonesia and ASEAN. The firm’s mission is to partner with and empower entrepreneurs with more than capital. ACV combines operational experience, industry knowledge, deep local networks, and resources to create value for startups. It is a generational partner to founders driving positive societal change and economic impact in Indonesia and beyond. The firm is an official signatory of the UN’s Women’s Empowerment Principles, IFC’s Invest2Equal program, and the UN’s Principles for Responsible Investing. Within the firm, 50% of its senior leadership roles are occupied by women. Across the portfolio, this figure comes in at 40%.
ACV currently has over US$500 million in assets under management, invested across five funds. Since 2012, the firm’s partners have invested in more than 120 technology companies in the region, including some of the most iconic names in the ASEAN digital ecosystem. ACV’s Partners Adrian Li, Michael Soerijadji, Helen Wong, and Pandu Sjahrir lead a team of over 35 professionals with offices in Jakarta and Singapore.
Enjoy ACV’s recent podcast episode with Dima Djani of ALAMI on Spotify, Google, and Apple.
See also: AC Ventures signs pacts with UN and IFC to drive gender equality, responsible investing
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AC Ventures is a leading venture capital firm investing in early-stage startups focused on Southeast Asia. We are a generational partner to founders driving positive environmental, societal, and economic impact. If your institution seeks to deploy smart capital in the market, please get in touch.