Jenfi, a Southeast Asia–focused SME credit platform, has announced the closing of a US$2.5 million mezzanine facility with ICU Ventures, an existing equity investor in the company.

The facility introduces a dedicated junior capital layer alongside Jenfi's existing senior funding arrangements, strengthening the company's institutional funding platform and supporting continued SME financing growth across Singapore and Vietnam. Mezzanine capital, which sits between senior debt and equity in a lender's capital structure, is increasingly used by maturing fintech credit platforms to improve funding flexibility and risk-adjusted returns without diluting equity holders.

The transaction also marks an expansion of Jenfi's relationship with ICU Ventures, extending from equity backing into institutional credit capital. As an existing investor already familiar with Jenfi's business, technology, and operating track record, ICU Ventures' decision to deepen its commitment reflects continued institutional support for the platform Jenfi has built.

Surpassing US$100 Million in Cumulative SME Financing

The announcement follows Jenfi's recent milestone of surpassing US$100 million in cumulative SME financing across Southeast Asia. Having demonstrated its ability to originate, underwrite, and manage SME credit at scale, the company is now focused on building the diversified capital base required to support its next stage of responsible growth.

"The first US$100 million validated our model at scale. Our next chapter is about building the institutional capital platform that can support the next US$100 million and beyond," said Jeffrey Liu, Founder and CEO of Jenfi. "ICU Ventures has supported Jenfi through multiple stages of our development. Its decision to deepen that relationship through this facility reflects confidence in both the credit platform we have built and the opportunity ahead."

Addressing the Southeast Asian SME Financing Gap

Across Southeast Asia, closing the SME financing gap requires more than identifying creditworthy businesses. Scalable lenders must also combine underwriting technology, disciplined portfolio management, and diversified institutional capital. Jenfi is building these capabilities as an integrated platform designed to connect institutional investors with underserved businesses across the region.

The scale of that underserved market is substantial. The International Finance Corporation has estimated that micro, small, and medium enterprises across developing East Asia and the Pacific face a financing gap in the trillions of dollars, with a significant share of formally registered SMEs lacking adequate access to credit. Traditional banks in the region have historically relied on collateral-based lending models, leaving revenue-generating but asset-light businesses—particularly in e-commerce, digital services, and trade—underserved.

The new mezzanine facility is designed to support new SME originations, improve the efficiency of senior capital deployment, and provide Jenfi with greater flexibility as its financing portfolio grows.

"Since our initial investment, Jenfi has made meaningful progress in strengthening its underwriting capabilities, expanding its financing solutions, and demonstrating disciplined execution across its core markets," said Giles Farley, Co-Head, ICU Ventures. "Our decision to deepen the relationship through this facility reflects our continued confidence in the team and in Jenfi's ability to build a scalable institutional credit platform. SMEs across Southeast Asia remain significantly underserved, and we believe Jenfi is well positioned to help close that gap through technology, local market expertise, and institutional capital."

From Revenue-Based Financing to a Broader SME Credit Platform

Jenfi has evolved from its initial focus on revenue-based financing into a broader SME credit platform supporting growth financing, working capital, and supply chain financing use cases. The shift reflects a broader trend among Southeast Asian fintech lenders that are expanding product suites as they mature from single-product originators into multi-product credit platforms serving a wider range of SME working capital and growth needs.

Since inception, the company has completed more than 2,400 financings and evaluated more than 30,000 SME financing inquiries across Southeast Asia. Jenfi combines proprietary underwriting models, alternative data, and automated portfolio monitoring to provide financing to businesses that are often underserved by traditional collateral-based lenders.

By combining senior institutional funding with the new mezzanine facility from ICU Ventures, Jenfi is building a more diversified and flexible funding base to support portfolio growth while maintaining disciplined credit selection and risk management.

"Scaling SME credit is not simply a matter of deploying more capital," Liu said. "The underwriting technology, portfolio operations, and funding structure all need to mature together. This transaction is an important step in that evolution."

Following the closing, Jenfi plans to continue expanding its institutional capital relationships, embedded financing partnerships, and AI-assisted underwriting and portfolio monitoring capabilities.