NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

Bamboo Capital Partners (“Bamboo”), the impact investing platform delivering social and financial value, is pleased to announce that its Bamboo Financial Inclusion Fund II (“BFIF II”) has taken part in round of investment totaling more than $18 million for Amartha Mikro Fintek (“Amartha”), a pioneering peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform for micro-entrepreneurs in Indonesia

The Series B investment was provided by several new investors including Line Ventures, Bamboo Capital Partners, UOB Venture Management and several additional new as well as existing shareholders.

Founded in 2010 by Indonesian entrepreneur Andi Taufan Garuda Putra, Amartha started as a microfinance institution before pivoting into Fintech P2P lending in 2016. Amartha’s mission is to connect aspiring unbanked micro-entrepreneurs in rural areas experiencing difficulties finding working capital with online lenders interested in making profitable, impactful investments.

Since then, Amartha has developed a proprietary technology platform and self-learning algorithm to automate key aspects of its operations, including the borrower application process, data gathering, credit decision making and scoring, and servicing. This technology allows Amartha to lower operating costs and reach geographically remote villages, thereby improving financial inclusion and economic resilience.

The company, which provides loans ranging from IDR 3 million ($213) to IDR 10 million ($712), has facilitated over IDR 1.5 trillion (over $106 mio) loan origination and served over 330,000 women micro-entrepreneurs across 5,200 villages, while successfully maintaining Non-Performing Loan (NPL) under 1%. The latest round of investment will be used to expand Amartha’s business throughout Indonesia to empower more women and support more families in rural areas. The company will also scale its technology platform and incorporate advanced machine learning capabilities to improve customer experience.

Commenting on the investment, Jean-Philippe de Schrevel, Founder & Managing Partner at Bamboo Capital Partners, said: “Bamboo is excited to add Amartha to its financial inclusion portfolio as it brings a fresh and unique approach to the distribution of capital to female micro entrepreneurs in Indonesia. Through its proprietary technology platform, Amartha connects high quality borrowers with investors, thus making financial services more accessible and creating new business opportunities for its clients. This investment further cements Bamboo’s leadership in financing innovative and impactful financial institutions.”

Bernhard Eikenberg, Fund Manager at Bamboo Capital Partners added: “With Amartha recently being licensed by Indonesian regulator OJK, we see significant opportunities for further expansion and customer acquisition in the medium to long term. Amartha is reshaping the traditional micro lending industry in the region and we are excited to support this exceptional team and company. Given Bamboo’s track record of investing in similar companies, we will also be able to leverage our experience and knowledge to support Amartha with the next phase of its growth and development.”

Andi Taufan Garuda Putra, Founder of Amartha added: “Bamboo’s hands-on experience in the field will undoubtedly help us direct the future of Amartha. We are specifically thrilled to start working with them on how we can increase our impact by reaching more consumers through expanding our micro lending platform. We are looking forward to a fruitful relationship.”

Photo courtesy of Seika.