Gold loan platform Oro Money to raise $12-15 M from new and existing investors: Report

According to two sources aware of the development, platform for gold loans Oro Money is prepared to secure a fresh round of funding from both current and prospective backers. Since its founding, the Chennai-based company has raised money twice; this is the second round.

“Oro is in mid-stage to pick up Rs 110-120 crore [$12-15 million] where the majority of financing will be done by existing investors like Premji Invest and 021 Capital,” said one of the sources. The person did not want to be identified. “New investor may also participate in”.

The company raised Rs 36 crore in a Series A round in February of last year, which was led by 021 Capital and included Premji Invest, Yash Amit Nanavati, Rathna Girish Mathrubootham, Prerna, and Mridual Sahuwala. Entrackr was the only outlet to cover the news.

The annual interest rate for gold loans offered by Oro Money is 9.48%. It is currently running in Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Pune, with plans to expand to Coimbatore and Delhi. Additionally, the business provides locker services for a monthly subscription fee of between Rs 3,999 and Rs 9,999.

According to sources, the company will likely surpass the $100 million valuation threshold after raising money. The valuation will have tripled from the Series A round valuation of $30 million.

As per media reports, Oro’s co-founder Rakesh Mani said, “At Oro, right now the things we’re most excited about is that we’ve completed over 20,000 transactions, operationalised our 75th branch partnership with our banking partners and there’s some great expansion work happening”.

But he made no remarks about the upcoming fundraising. At the time the story was published, Premji Invest and 021 Capital had not responded to any inquiries.

As of FY22, Oro Money was still in the pre-revenue stage. In FY22, the Rakesh Mani-led company’s operating revenue totaled Rs 70 lakh, up from about Rs 88k in FY21. According to the company’s consolidated financial statement filed with the RoC, losses increased significantly from Rs 85 lakh in FY21 to Rs 6.46 crore in FY22.

The business contends with rivals like Ruptok, Indiagold, and Rupeek. While Rupeek raised its most recent round of $34 million in January of last year, Indiagold raised $10 million in an extended Series A round in November 2022.