Mahaveer Finance, a Chennai-based non-banking financial company (NBFC) specializing in loans for used commercial and passenger vehicles, has secured ₹200 crore in a Series C funding round. The round was led by Elevation Capital, with continued support from existing investors BanyanTree and First Bridge Capital.
The funds will help the company expand its branch network across South India, enhance its proprietary credit evaluation system, and scale lending operations targeting underbanked customers. Currently managing assets exceeding ₹1,000 crore, Mahaveer aims to grow its assets under management (AUM) fivefold by FY28.
Founded in 1981, Mahaveer Finance ventured into used vehicle financing in 2001 and has developed what CEO Deepak Dugar describes as a “valuation-led underwriting model” that evaluates a vehicle’s price, usage history, and specifications “down to ownership changes and body type.”
“A major challenge in used vehicle lending is price discovery. We tackled this by backward integrating into the resale business early on. That helped us build a deep grid-based model that powers our credit decisions,” Dugar said.
Since 2016, under the second-generation leadership of CEO Deepak Dugar and CFO Praveen Dugar, Mahaveer Finance has grown its presence to 80 branches spanning Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Puducherry.
According to the company, around 70% of its borrowers are either first-time vehicle owners or individuals new to credit, typically between the ages of 30 and 45.
Elevation’s investment is seen as a validation of Mahaveer’s growth strategy in a
segment still heavily dependent on informal lending. “Around 35% of the market is
unorganised. Our value lies in helping customers buy right by guiding them on
vehicle pricing and keeping defaults low,” said Praveen Dugar.
Mahaveer’s proprietary credit engine, Surety, seamlessly integrates customer inputs, asset information, and API-based KYC verification to provide near-instant loan offers at the branch level. As a result, the company reports a notable increase in field executive productivity, rising from processing three to four loan files per month. This improvement is largely driven by a shift away from cash collections and the adoption of technology-enabled assessments.
Cash collections, which stood at 60% before the pandemic, have now dropped to around 10–15%, enabling executives to focus more on customer sourcing, according to CEO Deepak Dugar.
Mahaveer is also exploring opportunities in secured MSME lending and considering a future entry into EV financing, although it anticipates the used EV segment will take a few more years to mature.
With over 40 lending partners, including SBI and HDFC, and a consistently profitable track record, the company stated it has adequate capital to support operations for the next 12 to 18 months. While it did not disclose valuation or promoter stake details, Mahaveer has strengthened its governance by appointing new independent board members, including a former RBI Chief General Manager.
