Indonesian financial product marketplace Cermati has closed an undisclosed amount of Series B funding from Indonesian conglomerate Djarum Group which has seen existing venture investors exiting the startup.
In an official release, Cermati said the new capital injection from Djarum will be used to expand its reach in Indonesia and develop new product lines to increase the financial product penetration in Indonesia.
“Our mission is to advance Indonesia through financial inclusion. We believe that access to financial services can improve Indonesian life; Djarum shares the same mission and we are excited to work together with them,” said Cermati co-founer and CEO Andhy Koesnandar.
Cermati provides an online platform that helps customers research and buy credit cards, auto loans, personal loans and mortgages. It has recently broadened its offering into ID verification and underwriting of micro loans and insurance products.
With a customer base of over one million, it claims to have become the most visited financial e-commerce site in Indonesia.
Cermati last raised a funding in early 2017, securing a seven-digit US dollar Series A+ from Orange Growth Capital (OGC). It previously raised $1.9 million in an East Venture-led Series A round which included East Ventures, Beenos Plaza, and Finch Capital.
Prior to the announcement of fresh funding, Finch Capital had disclosed the sale of its minority stake in Cermati to Djarum, claiming an IRR of over 100 per cent and earned a return on capital of 2.7x from the exit.
Djarum Group is run by the Hartono family, regarded as the richest family in Indonesia. The group is regarded among the pioneers in Indonesia’s tech investment space, having set up its VC arm GDP Ventures in 2010.
GDP has invested media, commerce, and digital communities. Its most notable investments include online community Kaskus and e-commerce site BliBli, through which Djarum made the investment in Indonesia’s first unicorn Go-Jek.
Citing information by industry sources, this portal in June reported that Cermati was in the process of being acquired by a regional tech giant, citing information by sources aware of the development. At the time, the sources said they believed the acquirer to be Chinese giant Alibaba.
The startup was understood to have been in talks with around six investors to raise a Series B funding of around $8 million. However, the fundraising process was abruptly ended after the regional powerhouse evinced interest in investing in Cermati.
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