Resona Bank and Fivot Establish "RFC Venture Debt Fund 1"

Resona Bank and Fivot have jointly established the venture debt fund "RFC Venture Debt Fund 1 Limited Investment Partnership", with the aim of expanding financing for domestic startup companies from seed to middle stage.

Purpose and Background

Small and medium-sized enterprises, which account for 99.7% of Japanese companies, are vital to supporting the Japanese economy, but their numbers are declining due to factors such as aging. Startup companies are expected to serve as growth drivers for Japan's future. Against this backdrop, Resona Bank, which began handling venture debt in October 2023, and Fivot, which possesses expertise in innovative AI credit models and data analysis utilizing LLMs, will leverage their know-how to strengthen startup company support and stimulate the domestic venture market.

Improving speed through the use of large volumes of data and AI technology

Early-stage companies face challenges in raising growth capital because they are in the stage of demonstrating and scaling their businesses, making it difficult to grasp business realities, and their financial health is weak due to losses. This fund will execute loans to startup companies quickly and flexibly through the collection and analysis of alternative data utilizing cutting-edge technology and AI technology, and through business evaluation based on this data.

Streamlining lending operations through AI technology

Early-stage companies face challenges in organizing data necessary for loan approval and creating business plans due to a lack of human resources. By utilizing Fivot's AI technology to automate the organization and analysis of journal entries and bank deposit/withdrawal data, Fivot will streamline the loan application process for both customers and the fund, achieving operational efficiency. Furthermore, Fivot aims to introduce this system into Resona Bank's loan approval process for general companies, building a hybrid examination system that combines traditional approval methods with AI technology utilization.

Fund Overview

Fivot Completes Series B Funding Round Totaling 2 Billion Yen

Fivot, a startup company aiming to become a challenger bank pioneering the future through “AI × Finance,” has completed a funding round consisting of a 1 billion yen third-party allotment of shares in a Series B equity round and 1 billion yen in debt financing (loans), totaling 2 billion yen. Angel

Japan FinTech ObserverNorbert Gehrke