Bengaluru-based banking infrastructure startup Spense has successfully raised $2.8 million in a seed funding round to advance its asset-backed credit platform. The investment was led by Arkam Ventures, with significant participation from Razorpay Ventures, GrowthCap Ventures, and Atrium Ventures. This capital infusion will fuel the company's mission to build the foundational infrastructure for the next generation of credit in India, transforming underutilized assets into accessible credit lines.
Addressing India's Credit Infrastructure Gap
As India's financial ecosystem matures beyond unsecured lending, a significant opportunity lies in leveraging untapped assets like fixed deposits, mutual funds, and equities. Spense addresses this by providing a bank-native infrastructure layer that integrates with existing systems, enabling institutions to launch modern credit products. This technology allows banks to convert a vast pool of customer assets into secured credit cards and credit lines efficiently and at scale.
Strategic Use of New Capital
The newly acquired funds are earmarked for several key growth initiatives to strengthen the company's market position. Spense plans to deepen its partnerships with financial institutions, accelerate its product development pipeline, and expand its engineering and go-to-market teams. A primary focus will be the launch of its Credit Line on UPI (CLOU), further enhancing its intelligent infrastructure for asset-backed credit.
Impressive Growth and Market Traction
Spense has already demonstrated significant market penetration and robust demand for its innovative solutions. The company currently partners with seven major banks, including one of the country's largest public sector banks, and powers over 200,000 active cards. With more than 40,000 new cards issued monthly through its platform, Spense accounts for nearly 8% of India's total monthly credit card issuance.
Investor Confidence and Founder Vision
Pawan Kumar, Co-founder and CEO of Spense, believes India's credit challenge is fundamentally an infrastructure problem rather than a risk problem. He emphasized that the company is focused on building the technology to unlock the value of existing assets for credit access. This vision is centered on the idea that anyone with a valuable asset should have seamless access to modern credit facilities.
This sentiment is shared by investors, with Bala Srinivasa of Arkam Ventures stating that Spense is building foundational infrastructure for India's next credit era. Early backer GrowthCap Ventures, which led the company's pre-seed round, also participated, reaffirming its conviction in the team's execution and the market opportunity. The firm praised the founders' clarity of vision in enabling banks to unlock liquidity against assets at a large scale.
This $2.8 million funding round marks a significant milestone for Spense, equipping it to expand its technological capabilities and deepen its impact on India's fintech landscape. By focusing on the digitization of collateral, the company is poised to play a critical role in making formal credit more intelligent, scalable, and accessible. The investment validates Spense's approach to solving a core infrastructure challenge and supports its long-term vision for the future of banking.