Slice Bank aims to raise USD 300 million in funding

Slice Bank plans to leverage the funds to support its pan-India expansion strategy, with the company focusing on scaling its customer base, intending to grow from the current 11 million users to over 70 million by the end of 2030. The announcement comes a few months after Slice completed its merger with North East Small Finance Bank, with the company entering India’s banking sector. The move was set to enable Slice to become a banking entity in the region while also allowing it to better serve the combined entity’s shared interests and reach more consumers who traditionally lacked access to basic banking. Slice received approval from the central bank to proceed with the merger back in October 2023.

Slice Bank’s development strategy

In addition to seeking funding, Slice also mentioned its plans to rebrand as Slice Small Finance Bank Limited (Slice SFB), with the initiative marking the development of one of India’s first fintech banks. In the upcoming years, the company intends to launch a suite of financial services, including high-yield savings accounts, fixed deposits, co-branded credit cards, personal loans, small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) lending, gold loans, and digital banking solutions. Currently, Slice Bank has begun the process of launching banking solutions to selected user groups, providing competitive interest rates on savings accounts.

Furthermore, Slice Bank now operates 200 branches and intends to further expand its operations and customer base. If secured, the funding would come as an addition to a previous round from June 2022 when the company obtained USD 50 million. Led by Tiger Global, the funding round also saw participation from existing investors, including Moore Strategic Ventures and Insight Partners, and new ones such as GMO VenturePartners. Slice Bank became a fintech unicorn back in November 2021, with the company raising USD 220 million in a Series B funding round led by Tiger Global and Insight Partners. At that time, the company was projected to leverage the capital to scale its hiring skills, including engineering, design, and data science, and add more consumer products to its offering.