SMBC Asia Rising Fund makes follow-on investments worth $12-15 million in three fintech startups

Growth-stage investment fund SMBC Asia Rising Fund (ARF) on Tuesday announced follow-on investments worth $12-15 million in its portfolio companies Easy Home Finance (EHF), Vayana, and DPDzero.

The follow-on investments come on the back of recent fundraising by these companies. Easy Home Finance raised a $30 million Series round in January to expand its affordable housing finance business, taking its total funding till date to $80 million.

Trade finance platform Vayana secured follow-on primary and secondary investments from existing shareholders after receiving its NBFC licence last year. The company had raised $20.5 million in 2024 in a round led by ARF.


Bengaluru-based fintech startup DPDzero, which specialises in AI-driven debt collection, raised $7 million in a round led by Japanese venture capital (VC) firm GMO Venture Partners last August.

Focus on Asian fintechs

Japanese financial services major Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and VC firm Incubate Fund launched the Singapore-based corporate venture fund in 2023.

ARF has a 10-year tenure and was launched with a corpus of $200 million. It focuses on Asian fintech companies across sectors, including lending, payments, supply chain finance, banking-as-a-service, and digital assets.

“Our follow-on investments reflect a simple principle: we increase conviction where we see sustained execution and expanding opportunity. Each of these companies has evolved meaningfully since our initial investment and is building capabilities that go beyond technology to become foundational enablers of India’s financial ecosystem,” said Rajeev Ranka, partner – India investments, SMBC ARF, in a statement. “Whether it is expanding access to housing finance, strengthening trade credit infrastructure, or modernising collections, these businesses are solving real structural challenges at scale.”

The corporate venture fund stated that it expects India’s next phase of financial growth to be led by institutions and platforms expanding access to credit and improving capital efficiency. “Across all three companies, the fund has seen evidence of disciplined growth, and stronger operating leverage,” ARF said in a statement.