India’s affordable housing segment, particularly loans under ₹25 lakh, represents a ₹1.4 trillion annual market with over 1 million loans disbursed each year, yet a significant portion of demand remains unmet due to gaps in credit access for informal and semi-formal borrowers. Borrowers in this segment, often self-employed, gig workers, or small business owners, typically lack formal income documentation or clear property records, making them difficult to underwrite through traditional lending systems. At the same time, lenders face challenges in sourcing verified, loan-ready customers from these markets, limiting distribution of affordable home loans and Loan Against Property (LAP).
Nivasa Finance is building a full-stack distribution and fulfilment layer to address this gap. It supports borrowers across the entire loan journey, from initial assessment and documentation readiness to lender matching and disbursal, through a hybrid model that combines technology-led workflows with on-ground field execution. The company currently works with more than ten lending partners including banks, Small Finance Banks (SFBs), Housing Finance Companies (HFCs) and Non-Banking Finance Companies (NBFCs), enabling borrowers to access suitable loan options while helping lenders receive verified, disbursal-ready cases.
Since its launch in 2025, Nivasa has facilitated hundreds of loans worth over ₹20 crore, piloting the model in Mysore and Mandya districts of Karnataka. Nivasa’s model is particularly focused on borrowers building homes on rural and semi-urban markets, an increasingly important segment as housing demand shifts beyond metro cities. Rising aspirations, improving income formalisation, and increased lender appetite for secured lending in these markets are expected to drive sustained growth in this category.
Unlike traditional DSAs or branch-led sourcing, Nivasa combines remote onboarding, assessment and matchmaking, with doorstep service to improve conversion rates and the experience of both borrowers and lenders. The company also emphasises transparency and a zero-commission approach for customers, addressing long-standing trust gaps in the DSA segment. Nivasa has built customer-facing digital interfaces, WhatsApp-led and app-based journeys, to simplify onboarding and improve accessibility for borrowers in non-metro markets.
Nivasa Finance was founded by Samit Shetty and Hitesh Saraf, combining deep experience across microfinance and digital lending. Samit previously founded and scaled Chaitanya India Fin Credit, which was later acquired by Navi Technologies, and went on to lead Navi Finserve as its first CEO. His experience working with underserved borrowers highlighted a persistent gap in access to housing finance and loans against property. Hitesh has spent his career building digital lending and underwriting systems across fintechs and financial institutions. The founding team is now focused on building a scalable distribution and fulfillment layer for secured credit in India.
Nivasa is also exploring the path to securing an NBFC license to further strengthen its role within the secured lending ecosystem. The company plans to use the fresh capital to scale significantly over the next 12 months as it expands geographically and strengthens its distribution network and partnerships with banks, NBFCs and housing finance companies. In parallel, the company will continue to expand its field execution network.
Supporting Quotes
Samit Shetty, Founder & CEO, Nivasa Finance
“India doesn’t have a credit problem, it has a mortgage debt problem. Our mortgage debt to GDP ratio is at 20% of the levels in developed economies and below 40% of most developing countries, while on unsecured we are mostly on par. There is a large segment of borrowers across India who are building homes and own property but remain excluded from formal secured credit systems, not because of lack of intent or repayment ability, but because the access and fulfillment mechanisms are non-transparent and very complex. At Nivasa, we are building a distribution and fulfilment layer that gives customer clarity on viable loan options and keeps fulfilment simple for the customer, while enabling lenders to participate in this segment with greater confidence and efficiency.”
Sanjay Swamy, Managing Partner, Prime Venture Partners
“100% of households in more than 600,000 villages in India aspire to transform from semi-permanent to permanent homes and we see a lot of this happening in the next decade. Samit, Hitesh and team are committed to driving this transformation with fair and affordable financing and we're thrilled to partner with them in this journey.”
Karthik Reddy, Managing Partner, Blume Ventures
“Nivasa is building critical infrastructure for expanding access to secured finance in underpenetrated markets. Their focus on execution, customer readiness, and lender alignment positions them well to scale in this segment.”
Anshu Prasher, Partner, Whiteboard Capital
“India’s credit ecosystem is evolving rapidly, but large segments of borrowers still remain underserved because access and execution continue to be fragmented. What stood out to us about Nivasa is its ability to combine technology with deep on-ground understanding to simplify the secured lending journey for customers. We’re excited to partner with them as they build a category-defining platform in this space.”
About Nivasa Finance
Nivasa Finance is a secured loans fulfillment and distribution platform that enables underserved borrowers across India to access formal credit. The company combines technology with on-ground execution to support customers through the entire loan journey, from assessment and documentation to lender matching and disbursal, making credit more accessible, transparent, and efficient. For more information, please visit: https://www.nivasafinance.com/.
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