Azim Premji’s investment firm Premji Invest, along with Norwest and Lok Capital, plans to invest up to ₹1,000 crore in Vegafin Capital to build an artificial intelligence-led lending platform for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), according to a Bloomberg report published on October 21.
Vegafin, founded by former ICICI Bank executive Bijith Bhaskar, has signed definitive agreements to acquire a majority stake in Gurugram-based non-banking financial company (NBFC) Bizloan. The acquisition remains subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
Vegafin plans to use AI-driven underwriting, digital workflows and data-based credit assessments to evaluate borrowers. The company says the platform aims to improve lending decisions, reduce processing times and operating costs, and expand access to credit for underserved MSMEs.
Bizloan operates across five states through more than 35 branches and manages over ₹ 235 crore in assets under management (AUM). Founded in 2018 by Rahul Jain, Abhishek Mishra and Vikram Diwan, the NBFC focuses on secured lending to small businesses.
Bhaskar said in the company announcement, “Our ambition is to leverage AI and harness data from multiple sources to develop deeper insights into MSME businesses, enabling faster, granular and accurate assessment of credit risk.”
Bizloan’s existing investors include the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, Mohan Enterprises and BLinC Invest. Mohan Enterprises and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation will exit following the transaction, while BLinC Invest will remain invested.
EY Investment Banking acted as the exclusive financial adviser on the transaction.