Flobiz Raises $31M to Expand Neobank for Indian Small Businesses

FloBiz Secures $31 Million to Expand Neobank Services for SMBs

FloBiz, an India-based startup focused on developing a neobank specifically for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) operating within South Asia, announced on Monday a successful fundraising round totaling $31 million.

Series B Funding Details

The 18-month-old startup’s Series B financing was co-led by Sequoia Capital India and Think Investments. Existing investors, including Elevation Capital and Beenext, also participated in this round.

This latest investment brings FloBiz’s total funding raised to over $41 million.

MyBillBook: A Core Offering

FloBiz’s primary product, myBillBook, is designed to assist SMBs in digitizing their invoicing processes.

It also streamlines business accounting procedures and automates key workflows within their organizations.

The Indian SMB Market

India, recognized as the world’s second-largest internet market, is characterized by a vast number of SMBs.

Consequently, numerous startups have emerged in recent years, establishing neobanks with a specific focus on serving either millennial customers or businesses.

The Rise of SME-Focused Neobanks

According to analysts at Jefferies, neobanks concentrating on SMBs are successfully building client engagement by offering solutions such as automated invoicing, payment and collection management, accounting tools, inventory control, sales management, tax assistance, and, in some instances, interest on current account balances.

These capabilities can potentially accelerate monetization strategies.

Expanding Language Support and Technological Advancements

Currently supporting Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil, and English, MyBillBook is set to incorporate support for at least five additional regional languages within the coming six months.

The application has already surpassed 5 million downloads.

The startup intends to integrate technologies like AI and image processing to simplify the onboarding experience for less technologically proficient SMB owners in tier 2 and tier 3 cities across India.

Notable Backers

The new financing round attracted investment from a number of prominent entrepreneurs.

• Vijay Shekhar Sharma (Paytm)
• Kunal Shah (CRED)
• Jiten Gupta (Jupiter)
• Amrish Rau (Pine Labs)
• Krishnan Menon (BukuKas)
• Nitin Gupta (Uni Cards)

Investor Perspective

Tejeshwi Sharma, Managing Director of Sequoia Capital India, emphasized the crucial role of small businesses in the Indian economy.

He stated that powering the SMB economy with technology requires a profound understanding and empathy for this specific audience.

Sharma also expressed admiration for the user-centric approach, product focus, and experimental mindset of the FloBiz founders, highlighting a strong alignment between the team and the market.

Future Plans for FloBiz

Rahul Raj, co-founder and CEO of FloBiz, indicated that the newly acquired capital will be used to expedite ongoing projects.

These projects include developing customizable modules and features within myBillBook, diversifying the core product offerings, and preparing for the launch of financial services.

The company anticipates numerous developments over the next 12 months to further enhance the experience for its SMB partners.