Citi joins US$8.5 mil Series A for AI-powered embedded finance platform CrediLinq

• Investment will fund expansion into the US, UK and Australia 
• Returning investors 1982 Ventures, 500 Global, Epic Angels & Big Sky Capital joined the round

CrediLinq, the AI-powered embedded finance platform backed by 1982 Ventures, has announced the close of its US$8.5 million (RM37 million) Series A funding round. The round was led by OM/VC and MS&AD Ventures, with participation from new investors Citi North America and the Rustem Family Office. Returning investors include 1982 Ventures, 500 Global, Epic Angels, and Big Sky Capital.

CrediLinq will use the funds to accelerate geographic expansion, beginning with the United States, followed by the United Kingdom and Australia. In each market, the company aims to partner with large digital platforms to drive user growth and enable digitally native businesses to access capital. A portion of the funding will also support the company’s local operations in Singapore, including the hiring of senior commercial, product and technology talent, and further enhancement of its tech platform.

Deep Singh, founder and group CEO of CrediLinq, said: “Today marks a pivotal moment for CrediLinq as we scale embedded finance globally, helping platforms empower digital-native SMEs with flexible, transparent, and seamless access to capital. With this funding, we’re excited to deepen partnerships, enter new markets, and invest in talent and infrastructure to support our next phase of growth.”

Herston Powers, founding managing partner of 1982 Ventures, added: “This Series A, with support from global financial leaders like Citi, is a testament to CrediLinq’s vision and execution. We’re proud to back Deep, Vikram and the team as they expand internationally and empower SMEs in the digital economy.”

CrediLinq will strengthen its leadership in sales, marketing, product and technology to support growth in key markets. A significant portion of the investment will go toward advancing its AI-powered credit algorithms, which leverage real-time digital footprints, platform and unstructured data, and bureau information to reduce non-performing loans, improve collections, and power agentic workflows that boost efficiency.

The company’s embedded solutions serve platforms across procurement, supply chain, e-commerce, freelancing, banking, accounting, and payments. In the e-commerce space, CrediLinq is already integrated with major marketplaces such as Amazon, Lazada and TikTok Shop.

Vikram Kotibhaskar, co-founder of CrediLinq, said: “The embedded credit revolution is accelerating, and CrediLinq is leading the charge. Our Credit-as-a-Service stack uses APIs, transactional data and AI to deliver fast, seamless credit decisions and embedded financing at the point of need.”

“This results in a frictionless customer experience and new monetisation channels for platforms. Our agentic workflows ensure continuous monitoring and efficiency while maintaining low loan losses. Platform partners gain trust, stickiness and scale — ultimately driving up GMV.”