BlackOpal Group gets NBFC licence

Asset management company BlackOpal announced on March 9 that it has received a licence from RBI to start NBFC operations. It will operate under a separate SPV, BlackOpal Financial Services Pvt Ltd, said a press release.

According to the release, the company has already raised $1.5 million for minority stake dilution. It plans to use 50 pc of funds in retail and another half in real estate projects.

“NBFC will focus on bridging the financial gap for the SMEs/retail and wholesale lending businesses and will be fully integrated with the asset management business of BlackOpal,” said Prasoon Chauhan, Founder, BlackOpal.

Under a separate platform, BlackOpal Asset Management, BlackOpal is currently managing five projects in various capacities, totalling 2.5 million sqft having an estimated value of approximately Rs 1,325 crore.

Talking about stuck projects in the real estate sector, Chauhan said, “We are keen to partner through financing as well as project managers in such projects that are today unviable because of bad financial structures. These projects require a new source of last-mile funding. If they get it, the developer will be willing to pay a premium to deliver the project and NBFC will be able to recover its money by ensuring better controls through asset management model.”