Loan distribution Company Andromeda has acquired online loan solutions firm Apnapaisa for an undisclosed amount in a stock cum cash deal. Andromeda will use Apnapaisa’s technology to fasten its growth and use the acquired company’s management bandwidth to digitise its business. Apnapaisa is co-founded in 2007 by Naresh Daga and Rajesh Vyas, is owned and operated by Mumbai-based Apna Paisa Marketing and Services Pvt Ltd. The company claims to have helped over two million customers in choosing loan products across categories such as home loan, personal loan, business loan and loan against property.
With spotless path record in the loan distribution business over the last 15 years, it is natural for the company to accelerate its process of growth by leveraging Apnapaisa’s digital strength. The company competes with BankBazaar.com, PolicyBazaar.com, MyInsuranceClub.com, InsuranceMall.in, ApnaInsurance.com and Getmeinsure.com. Andromeda as a group, which was involved in BPO service and loan distribution, was acquired by Navis Capital back in 2007 for Rs 180 crore. It was finally meshed up with Andromeda Sales before being spun out as a separate firm that was sold to Casa Capital.
The company incorporated in 1991, Mumbai based Andromeda as Direct Sales Associate for Citibank; the company is a leading direct sales and distribution player in India. Andromeda is a distributor of loans, mortgage, financing and financial instruments such as credit cards, home loans, unsecured business loans, and car loans. It has presence in more than 30 cities across the country with employee strength of 1000 people and distributes close to RS 8000 crore in loans per year and is planning to expand its footstep in 100 cities. Both tier I and tier II cities will be part of this expansion plan as housing finance requirement is expected to observe a sharp increase. The company has a customer base of more than 1 lakh.
The acquisition is not just for generating additional business, it is also aimed to benefit from the management strength of Apnapaisa to digitize the existing business and also to increase their image in products like credit cards and personal loans which are rapidly going digital. Lending is a complex business and requires contextual involvement, particularly in secure products. With the housing sector attacked for rapid growth across the country, this acquisition will further combined their pre-eminent position.
