Finova Financial’s industry-first, cloud and mobile-based consumer auto title lending platform has raised $52.5 million in a combination of equity and a credit facility, one of the largest initial rounds in FinTech industry history, Finova announced today.
The funding round was led by Silicon Valley and international venture capital firms, prominent tech entrepreneurs and others, including: MHS Capital; Refactor Capital; Metamorphic Venture; 500 StartUps; leading fintech entrepreneurs Sam Hodges, Co-founder and Managing Director of Funding Circle; Jake Gibson, co-founder of NerdWallet; Al Hamra Group, a private company owned by the ruling family of Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates, and others. CoVenture provided the credit facility to support the enterprises’ growth.
The funding will be used by Finova to grow the industry’s first all-digital lending platform serving the auto title loan marketplace, with a social-impact emphasis, while delivering up to 70% lower cost to consumers.
“Finova Financial was launched to help consumers get critically-needed cash without the traditional barriers of high interest rates, inconvenient application processes and restrictive payment terms of the auto title lending industry,” said CEO Gregory Keough. “As a company committed to social impact, we see Finova Financial as being an advocate for consumer financial well-being through improved access to credit, better repayment terms and lower costs.”