Lidya, a US-based financial technology (fintech) firm active in Nigeria, recently announced that it is beginning to lend to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the Czech Republic and Poland, particularly in the agricultural, pharmaceutical and retail sectors. The projected average loan size in these countries is USD 15,000, five times the company’s average loan size in Nigeria. This expansion is part of Lidya’s plans to disburse USD 1.1 billion to MSMEs over the next five years, including in four new countries each year. The firm offers credits of USD 150 to USD 100,000 with loan disbursal within 24 hours of application.
Lidya Cofounder Tunde Kehinde said, “During slowdowns, banks restrict themselves from taking risks while businesses still need to function and finance their operational expenses. Together with the long-term investors on our side, we are basically agnostic to business cycles.”
Founded in 2016 by Mr Kehinde and Ercin Eksin, Lidya’s mission is to improve MSMEs’ access to growth opportunities by helping them “open accounts, save money, build credit profiles, and access credit.” The firm is registered in the US and Luxembourg, and it operates a technology office in Portugal.
Lidya has issued 11,000 loans and raised funds totaling USD 8.2 million. The fintech’s investors include the Kenya-based Savannah Fund, Luxembourg-based Bamboo Capital Partners, the Netherlands-based Goodwell and Nigeria-based Alitheia, as well as the following US-based entities: Accion Venture Lab, Newid Capital, Omidyar Network and Tekton Ventures.
By Anna Gravois, Research Associate
Sources and Additional Resources
Business Day article
https://businessday.ng/technology/article/lydia-eyes-1-1bn-to-revolutionise-msme-funding-in-eastern-europe/
Lidya homepage
https://www.lidya.co/
Accion Venture Lab webpage
https://www.accion.org/how-we-work/invest/accion-venture-lab
Omidyar Network homepage
https://www.omidyar.com
Alithea homepage
http://www.thealitheia.com
Savannah Fund homepage
https://savannah.vc
Bamboo Capital homepage
http://www.bamboocp.com
Goodwell homepage
https://www.goodwell.nl
Newid Capital homepage
https://www.newidcapital.com
Tekton Ventures homepage
http://tektonventures.com
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