Kiwi, a Bengaluru-based fintech startup, has raised $24 million (about ₹208 crore) in its Series B funding round. Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India led the round, with continued participation from existing investors Nexus Venture Partners, Stellaris Venture Partners, and Omidyar Network. The new capital gives Kiwi a strong runway to accelerate product development, strengthen partnerships with banks, and sharpen its unit economics.
This milestone marks a critical step for the company as it pushes to transform India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) ecosystem by embedding credit directly into everyday transactions. With the country’s digital payment system crossing billions of monthly transactions, Kiwi positions itself at the heart of India’s next wave of financial innovation.
Founding and Vision
Former Freecharge CEO Siddharth Mehta co-founded Kiwi in 2022 with Mohit Bedi and Anup Agrawal. The founders identified a massive opportunity: while UPI had become the backbone of payments in India, credit usage on UPI lagged far behind. Banks continued to issue credit cards through traditional channels, leaving a gap for a fintech that could bring the flexibility of credit into India’s most widely adopted payment system.
Kiwi launched with the idea of issuing digital RuPay credit cards that link seamlessly to UPI. This allowed customers to pay through familiar QR codes or merchant interfaces while enjoying the benefits of a credit line. In simple terms, the company made UPI not just a real-time payment network but also a credit-enabled platform.
Early Growth and Funding Journey
Kiwi’s fundraising journey reflects the increasing confidence investors have in this model. In May 2023, the company raised $6 million in a pre-seed round from Nexus Venture Partners, Stellaris Venture Partners, and several angel investors. The company used those funds to build its initial platform and launch its first set of digital RuPay cards.
By November 2023, Kiwi had grown rapidly enough to secure a $13 million Series A led by Omidyar Network India. With that investment, the company scaled operations, strengthened its technology infrastructure, and built partnerships with banks like YES Bank and AU Small Finance Bank. By the end of 2023, Kiwi had already issued more than 25,000 RuPay credit cards and attracted half a million registered users.
This growth gave investors confidence that the fintech could not only scale but also address a structural gap in India’s credit market.
The $24 Million Series B
In August 2025, Kiwi announced its $24 million Series B funding round. Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India led the investment, with strong participation from Nexus, Stellaris, and Omidyar. The round brought Kiwi’s total funding to more than $40 million in just over two years.
The company plans to channel this capital into three major areas:
- Product Development: Kiwi will roll out new credit features on UPI, including flexible credit lines that go beyond traditional card-linked payments.
- Banking Partnerships: The company will expand its tie-ups beyond YES Bank and AU Small Finance Bank by adding at least two large banking partners in FY26.
- Unit Economics: Kiwi aims to improve margins by enhancing underwriting models, reducing default risks, and optimizing transaction costs.
The infusion of funds positions Kiwi to deepen its presence in India’s booming digital credit space.
Operating Scale and Ambitions
Kiwi has already issued more than 200,000 RuPay cards and now processes over five million merchant transactions every month. Its network covers more than 600 cities, giving it reach across both metropolitan and semi-urban areas.
The company has set an ambitious target: to issue one million RuPay cards by 2027. With UPI already handling nearly 20 billion transactions per month nationwide, the growth potential for Kiwi’s credit-on-UPI model looks enormous.
UPI as the Growth Engine
UPI has become the backbone of digital payments in India. By July 2025, UPI processed 19.47 billion transactions worth over ₹25 trillion, which equals around 7,000 transactions per second. With more than 500 million active users, UPI has established itself as one of the largest real-time payment systems in the world.
For fintech companies, this creates fertile ground. UPI offers not only scale but also a trusted, ubiquitous network that consumers and merchants already use daily. By embedding credit into UPI transactions, Kiwi taps into a natural behavioral pattern: people prefer convenience, and they want credit where they already pay.
The Reserve Bank of India further unlocked this potential in September 2023 when it allowed credit lines on UPI. This regulatory shift gave companies like Kiwi the green light to build credit products directly within the UPI framework, creating a new category of financial services.
Investor Confidence and Strategic Support
The Series B round highlights how strategic investors view Kiwi as more than just another fintech. Vertex Ventures brings deep experience in scaling consumer technology and financial platforms across Asia. Nexus and Stellaris have backed Kiwi since its early stages, showing long-term conviction. Omidyar Network brings a social impact perspective, emphasizing financial inclusion and responsible lending.
Together, these investors provide not only capital but also networks, regulatory insights, and operational guidance. This combination strengthens Kiwi’s ability to navigate competition from larger banks and established fintech firms.
Competition and Differentiation
India’s fintech landscape has become highly competitive, with players like Paytm, PhonePe, and Cred already experimenting with credit integration. However, Kiwi differentiates itself by building its business model entirely around UPI-linked credit rather than treating it as a side product.
By focusing narrowly on credit via UPI, Kiwi has created a deep integration with banks, merchants, and users. Its early partnerships with YES Bank and AU Small Finance Bank show that even traditional lenders see value in collaborating with fintechs that specialize in UPI credit products.
Impact on Credit Access
India still has relatively low credit card penetration compared to developed economies. Estimates suggest fewer than 5% of Indians hold a credit card, even as UPI adoption soars. Kiwi’s model expands credit access without requiring customers to go through lengthy card application processes or physical issuance.
This approach especially benefits younger users, first-time borrowers, and people in smaller towns. By making credit as simple as scanning a QR code, Kiwi contributes to financial inclusion while giving banks new ways to underwrite risk using UPI transaction histories.
Challenges Ahead
Despite strong momentum, Kiwi faces significant challenges. The company must ensure robust risk management to avoid defaults as it expands credit offerings. Competition from larger players could put pressure on margins and customer acquisition costs. Regulatory oversight will also intensify as credit-on-UPI products scale.
To succeed, Kiwi needs to balance aggressive growth with disciplined execution. Strengthening its data models, maintaining transparency with regulators, and building consumer trust will play a decisive role in its long-term success.
Conclusion
Kiwi has emerged as one of the most innovative fintechs in India’s rapidly evolving payments ecosystem. By embedding credit directly into UPI, it has unlocked a new category of financial products that combine convenience with access.
With $24 million in fresh capital, the company stands ready to accelerate its next phase of growth. Its vision of reaching one million cardholders by 2027 now looks within reach, provided it can scale responsibly and maintain strong partnerships with banks.
In a market where UPI continues to set global benchmarks for real-time payments, Kiwi has carved out a niche that blends credit and convenience. As it grows, the company may well become the standard-bearer for credit on UPI, shaping the future of digital finance in India.
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