Novio, a fintech startup focused on expanding credit access across India, has raised ₹100 crore in a Series A funding round. The round was led by Cornerstone Venture Partners, with participation from Shepherd’s Hill Group ESV Arthya AIF and Roots Ventures. Additional venture debt came from InnoVen Capital India and Alteria Capital. The raise marks a significant step forward for a company built around one central idea: credit should be available to everyone who deserves it, not just those who already have a financial track record.
A problem hiding in plain sight
For years, a large portion of India’s population has been denied access to credit cards simply because they lacked the paperwork to prove their eligibility. No income documents, no credit history, no prior financial footprint, these were the invisible barriers that kept millions of people away from basic financial tools that others take for granted.
Novio was built as a direct response to this gap. The company offers a premium credit card that does not require income proof, a credit history, or eligibility checks of the kind that traditional banks typically demand. The goal was to design a product around the customer rather than around the system’s convenience.
Novio’s cardholders are now spread across more than 12,000 pin codes across India, a sign that the platform’s reach is growing steadily beyond urban centers.
Recognition for the people who made it possible
Alongside the funding announcement, the novio team took a moment to recognize those who contributed to the journey. Co-founders Sandeep Ghule, Anand Kapadia, and Manish Sinha were acknowledged for their commitment and for staying focused on the purpose behind the company from the very beginning.
The core team, including Kartik Shanker, Munjal Dhamecha, Neelam Sanguri, Rolvy Fernandes, and Gaurav Aggarwal, was credited for every customer onboarded, every challenge worked through, and every product improvement made along the way.
The announcement also specifically recognized Abhishek Prasad and Vatsal Bavishi from the Cornerstone Ventures team for backing novio early and continuing to reinforce that support at moments when it counted the most. The team described this kind of investor relationship as genuinely rare.
The Series A raise positions novio to deepen its presence across the country and continue expanding access to credit for Indians who have historically been overlooked by mainstream financial institutions. With a product already active in thousands of pin codes and a clear founding mission, the company appears well positioned to grow this segment of the market in a meaningful way.
For a startup that began with the observation that millions of deserving people were simply being turned away, reaching this funding milestone represents more than just capital. It is evidence that the problem novio set out to solve is real, the demand is there, and the approach is working.
Source: Official announcement shared by the novio founder on LinkedIn.
