EV financing NBFC Mufin Green Finance has raised Rs 140 crore in Series B round of equity funding, on top of Rs 530 crore raised in debt funding, last financial year, the company announced on Tuesday. The debt was raised from financial institutions including State Bank of India, IREDA, AU Small Finance Bank, ICICI Bank, and Kotak Mahindra while equity investment had substantial support from family offices, the company said without disclosing the names of family offices.
Mufin Green Finance said the capital will be used to “accelerate Mufin’s growth trajectory” and “scale up their business operations in the down west region of the country.”
Kapil Garg, MD of Mufin Green Finance, said “The funding affirms the strength of our business model and positions us effectively to meet the ever-increasing demands of our expanding customer base. Also, it will equip us to explore more product avenues in the EV ecosystem, as we are looking to further invest in more electric vehicle categories from buses, LCVs to commercial four-wheelers.”
Mufin Green Finance’s asset under management (AUM) was Rs 502 crore as on December 2023 and is expected to close FY2024 with an AUM of Rs 650-700 crore.
The company has a presence in 16 states across India, with financing options for EVs across two, three and four-wheelers, fast chargers, swappable batteries and similar products for both retail and fleet operators.
Importantly, SIDBI, the principal financial institution for MSMEs in India, June last year had launched mission EVOLVE (Electric Vehicle Operations and Lending for Vibrant Ecosystem) in association with NITI Aayog, World Bank, Korean-World Bank and Korean Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) to finance MSMEs in the EV space.
Under the initiative, SIDBI gives MSMEs access to affordable commercial financing for EV loans including hosting of telematics that could help reduce financing costs and provide data for other financial services.
EV sales in 2023 had recorded significant growth as the volume surpassed 1.5 million, up by 50 per cent from 2022, as per credit ratings company CareEdge. The EV share of auto sales had increased to 6.38 per cent in 2023 from 1.75 per cent in 2021. Category-wise, 2W and 3W had recorded growth of 37 per cent and 66 per cent, respectively, while passenger vehicle was at 113 per cent and commercial vehicle at 169 per cent given the lower base.
“CY24 looks promising with the industry expecting to surpass sales volume of 2 million in CY24, underpinned by surging demand and sustained government support through incentives. However, investments in the EV ecosystem remain crucial for fostering EVs’ massive adoption” as per CareEdge.