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

By Shagun Karki

GoBear, a Singapore based fintech startup, has raised US$17 million in a funding round led by returning investors Walvis Participaties, a Dutch VC firm, and Aegon N.V., a Netherlands-based asset management company, according to a press statement.

The company said that the latest round of capital will be utilised for continued expansion across three growth pillars: An online financial supermarket, digital insurance brokerage, and digital lending, “all built on a strong foundation of alternative data”.

Following its latest acquisition of lending platform AsiaKredit, the company also has plans of expanding into other markets in Asia.

It currently has a presence in seven Asian markets including Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Also Read: Financial products comparison firm GoBear acquires lending platform AsiaKredit to build regional reach

“Our latest fundraise is validation that our investors continue to see our potential for growth and that we’re on track to build a robust financial services platform that Asia needs,” said CEO Adrian Chng. “Built on our strong foundation of alternative data, we can better assess and price risk, co-create better products, and ultimately improve financial inclusion.”

Chng claims that GoBear’s digital insurance brokerage segment has seen a 52 per cent increase in average order value in the last three months.

The company has also registered a 50 per cent year-on-year revenue growth from loan products, it added.

Founded in 2015, GoBear was initially meant to be a metasearch engine, before making a transition into financial services. It currently has over 100 commercial partners, including banks and insurance providers, and is used by over 55 million people.

Last year, GoBear raised US$80 million from Aegon and Walvis Participaties. Since which, its revenues claims to have increased by over 100 per cent from consumer finance products.

This marks GoBear’s fifth fundraise to date.

In the past month, fintech startups in the region continued to gain investors’ attention. In April, fintech startups such as Investree, Modalku, and KoinWorks raised their later stage funding rounds despite uncertainty in the market due to a global health crisis.

Photo courtesy of Fabio.