StopDownOpen the app

Funding · Financial Services

Spense raises $2.8M seed funding to build asset-backed credit infrastructure

By ·

Date
Company
Spense
What it does
secured lending infrastructure
Kind
Funding
Amount
$2.8M
Stage
seed
Founded
2022
Sector
Financial Services

What they do

Spense builds infrastructure for banks to offer secured credit products like credit cards and lines, using customer assets such as fixed deposits and mutual…

What happened

The startup raised $2.8 million in a seed round led by Arkam Ventures, with participation from Razorpay Ventures, Atrium Ventures, and GrowthCap Ventures

Why it matters

Spense works with seven major banks and issues over 40,000 cards every month, contributing to nearly 8% of India's monthly credit card issuances

The details

  • Spense, a Bengaluru-based fintech startup, raised $2.8 million in a seed funding round led by Arkam Ventures, with participation from Razorpay Ventures, Atrium Ventures, and GrowthCap Ventures.
  • The startup aims to build infrastructure for banks to offer secured credit products, such as credit cards and credit lines, using customer assets like fixed deposits, mutual funds, and insurance policies.
  • Spense enables banks to launch modern asset-backed credit products without replacing their existing technology infrastructure.
  • The company has partnered with seven major banks and issues over 40,000 cards every month, contributing to nearly 8% of India's monthly credit card issuances.
  • Spense's latest product, Credit Line on UPI (CLOU), allows banks to offer reusable credit lines backed by customer assets, functioning like a credit card.
  • The startup believes that secured credit can help millions of first-time borrowers in India build credit histories and access formal credit more sustainably.
  • Spense's approach aligns with the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) cautious stance on unsecured consumer lending, emphasizing the need for better asset quality.

The bigger picture

  • India's credit ecosystem has traditionally leaned heavily toward unsecured lending, but a massive pool of financial assets remains underutilized within the formal lending ecosystem.
  • Spense believes the real challenge in credit access is infrastructure, not risk, and aims to build a bank-native infrastructure layer that enables banks to transform customer-owned assets into modern credit products.
  • The startup's platform helps financial institutions unlock liquidity against customer assets, making credit more accessible while reducing lending risk.

About the business

  • Spense builds infrastructure for banks to offer secured credit products, such as credit cards and credit lines, using customer assets like fixed deposits, mutual funds, and insurance policies.
  • The company enables banks to launch modern asset-backed credit products without replacing their existing technology infrastructure.
  • Spense's platform helps financial institutions unlock liquidity against customer assets, making credit more accessible while reducing lending risk.
  • The startup has partnered with seven major banks and issues over 40,000 cards every month, contributing to nearly 8% of India's monthly credit card issuances.
  • Spense's growth is driven by the increasing demand for modern lending infrastructure that bridges traditional banking with new-age digital credit products.

What happens next

  • Spense will use the fresh capital to deepen banking partnerships, accelerate product development, expand engineering and go-to-market teams, and launch Credit Line on UPI (CLOU).
  • The company is focused on integrating credit more seamlessly into India's fast-growing digital payments ecosystem.
  • Spense aims to build the intelligence and infrastructure layer for future credit products.

The deal

Type
funding

Investors

  • Arkam Ventures (lead) — A venture capital firm focused on early-stage investments in fintech and deep tech startups.
  • Razorpay Ventures (participated) — A venture capital firm that invests in early-stage startups in the fintech and technology sectors.
  • Atrium Ventures (participated) — A venture capital firm that focuses on early-stage investments in fintech and technology startups.
  • GrowthCap Ventures (participated) — An operator-led early-stage venture capital firm focused on backing category-defining startups across FinTech, AI, and DeepTech.

Founders

  • Pawan Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO
  • Srinivas Krishnamurthy, Co-Founder and CTO

About Spense

Product
A programmable banking infrastructure platform for secured credit cards, credit lines, prepaid instruments, forex products, and CLOU.
Customers
Banks, regulated financial institutions, and fintech partners.
How it makes money
B2B infrastructure software and integration services for financial institutions.
What sets it apart
Real-time core-banking integration that lets institutions launch credit products without replacing existing systems.
Operations
Connects core banking, deposit, and card management systems while maintaining compliance and auditability.

Other articles talking about it

Read it as a card in the app

Same day

All startup news on 1 July 2026 →