Lulalend, a South African digital lender serving SMEs, has raised $35 million in a Series B investment round directed by lightrock.
New investors, namely the German development finance institution DEG, Triodos Investment Management and Women’s World Banking Asset Management, also participated in the fundraising.
They were joined by current sponsors The International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Quona Capital.
Lightrock Principal Arul Thomas stated, “We are delighted to partner with Trevor and his dedicated team, who are leveling the playing field for SMBs with their simple, fast and transparent approach to trade finance.”
Lulalend will use the infusion to scale its business, including accelerating the launch of its new digital business banking offering called Lula.
The Lula neobank has been developed in collaboration with Access Bank.
It provides a personalized bank account for SMEs, along with a cash flow management tool powered by artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
The funds obtained will also allow the company to expand the size of its loan book, implement new solutions and invest in talent.
The goal is to help close the credit gap for South Africa’s SMEs, which the International Finance Corporation says amounts to more than $20 billion a year.
Founded in 2014, Lulalend has 20,000 clients on the waiting list.
In a blog post, Lulalend co-founder and CEO Trevor Gosling said: “Above all, we are determined to ensure that this investment ultimately benefits the more than 2 million formal and informal SMEs in South Africa whose needs financial services remain highly neglected. ”
