Fintech startup Rupeek gives out $1 billion in gold-backed loans

Consumers in India -- where gold is considered both a status symbol and a popular investment -- hold about $1.5 trillion of the precious metal, mostly in jewelry, according to the World Gold Council

Rupeek Fintech Pvt, a start-up that lends against gold as collateral, raised $34 million to accelerate its efforts to monetise India’s $1.5 trillion private stash of the precious metal.
 

The Bangalore-based firm, whose technology links nearly a dozen banks to individual borrowers, received backing from investors including Lightbox, GGV Capital and Bertelsmann, taking its valuation to $634 million with $134 million raised so far. Rupeek’s annual loan disbursement rate was $1 billion in December, a first among India’s asset-backed lending startups, according to a statement Tuesday.
 

“Rupeek’s growth trajectory changed dramatically and loan volumes doubled in the second half of