PeopleFund raises 75.9 billion won in Series C funding

Online investment-linked finance company PeopleFund announced on the 2nd that it had raised KRW 75.9 billion in a Series C round from leading global financial institutions, including Bain Capital and a private debt fund under CLSA Capital Partners’ Lending Ark.

Bain Capital led the round. PeopleFund’s major investors now include Bain Capital, CLSA Lending Ark, 500 Global, and Kakao Pay. The company has raised a total of KRW 100 billion to date. Goldman Sachs and CLSA Lending Ark also participated in this round and will advise PeopleFund on securing institutional investment.

Founded in 2015 to address structural challenges in serving borrowers with mid- to low credit scores, who face high borrowing costs, PeopleFund became the first Korean online investment-linked finance company to enter the regulated financial sector on June 10. As of the end of October, its cumulative loan volume stood at KRW 1.1666 trillion, with a delinquency rate of 2.06%. In personal credit loans, it had a 57% market share by outstanding balance and a delinquency rate of 2.54%. Its proprietary alternative credit scoring system and risk management have helped it keep delinquencies among the lowest in the industry.

PeopleFund plans to use the proceeds to hire AI specialists and secure alternative data to enhance its credit scoring algorithms. It will also focus investment on credit scoring technology built on a MyData license it expects to obtain by the end of this year.

Tim Chae, managing partner at 500 Global, which has invested in PeopleFund in every round since its seed financing, said, "In the U.S. market, digital lending companies such as Upstart and SoFi are valued at tens of trillions of won, but the sector is only just getting started in Korea. We strongly believe that PeopleFund, which has demonstrated its technological capabilities through its results, will grow into the leading technology-driven financial platform in Korea’s non-bank digital lending market."

PeopleFund CEO Kim Dae-yoon said, “This investment is significant because it shows that the world’s leading financial institutions recognize the opportunities in Korea’s lending market and PeopleFund’s growth potential. Over the past six years, we have focused on proving our risk management capabilities—the most important competency for a financial institution—and establishing ourselves as a regulated financial company. Going forward, we will do everything we can to grow into Korea’s leading non-bank financial institution and transform the traditional secondary financial sector.”

PeopleFund: https://www.peoplefund.co.kr/