Urbane offers fundraising for SMEs

Established in January 2015, the company is headed by Vijay Shenoy, who is a chartered accountant by profession and has been actively involved in helping corporate firms with fundraising for last 25 years.

Speaking to PrintWeek India, Shenoy said “We explore different options for the customer to arrange funds and try to provide the best fit from among the range of alternatives available in the market.”

The company offers a host of options for equipment and project finance, which include loans from public sector and private banks, non-bank financial companies (NBFC), SIDBI and other financial institutions.

According to Shenoy, SMEs in printing and packaging industry need better management of the books, which will help getting funds at cheaper costs. "There is ignorance when it comes to cash flow management in SMEs and due to lack of awareness and poor balance sheets, fundraising becomes a costly affair," said Shenoy.

Shenoy added, “Once the customer finalises the price with equipment manufacturers, we step in to arrange the funds for the investment. In most of the cases, the rate of interest will range between 12 to 13 per cent per annum, depending on the balance sheet size of the borrower. Wherever possible, we will try to waive off the requirement of collateral, subject to approval of financing agency.”

The newly launched company is in the process of appointing associates on pan India level.