Indonesia: ADB-Backed NextFin Asia Makes First Investment in Lending Platform Finfra
Indonesian lending software firm Finfra has become the first company to receive money from NextFin Asia, a new fund backed by the venture arm of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The deal, a Series A extension whose size was not disclosed, is a small but telling bet on the “plumbing” that lets apps and online platforms offer loans to small businesses.
Key facts
- Finfra, founded in 2022, is a lending-as-a-service platform: lenders use it to originate, assess, manage and collect loans on one system.
- The round was led by ADB Ventures through the NextFin Asia fund, with existing investors Cento Ventures and Accion Ventures joining. The amount was not disclosed.
- NextFin Asia launched in February 2026 as a partnership between the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT), ADB Ventures and Luxembourg’s foreign affairs ministry.
- Finfra took part in LHoFT’s Catapult: Inclusion SE Asia accelerator in 2024. The company says an affiliate works with the Financial Services Authority (OJK), Indonesia’s financial regulator.
What Finfra does
Most people never see Finfra. It sells software through APIs, which are standard connections that let one system talk to another. A lender or a digital platform plugs into Finfra to run the whole life of a loan: taking the application, checking risk with automated underwriting, managing repayments and collecting what is owed. Finfra also helps its clients reach institutional money to fund those loans.
The bigger idea is embedded finance. Instead of sending a small shop owner to a bank branch, a marketplace, supplier app or point-of-sale provider can offer working capital inside the app the merchant already uses every day. Finfra provides the engine behind that offer.
The new money will go towards growing the business, improving its technology and expanding into new markets, according to the announcement. Founder and chief executive Markus Prommik said the goal is to make lending infrastructure easier to access so that institutions can serve businesses that are usually overlooked.
Why it matters
Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy, has millions of micro and small businesses, and many still struggle to borrow from banks because they lack credit histories or collateral. Digital lending has grown quickly to fill the gap, but it has also drawn tighter rules from the OJK after problems with unlicensed and aggressive online lenders. Infrastructure players such as Finfra pitch themselves as a way for licensed lenders to reach more borrowers while keeping proper risk checks and records.
The deal is also a first test for NextFin Asia’s model. The fund pairs an accelerator programme with access to ADB Ventures money, aiming to turn promising early-stage fintech firms in Southeast Asia into investable companies. ADB Ventures said Finfra is helping to close the financing gap for small businesses, a long-running goal for development lenders across the region.
For the wider region, the bet reflects a shift in where investors see value: less in consumer-facing apps fighting for users, and more in the back-end tools that banks, lenders and platforms rent to launch credit products quickly.
What to watch
- Which new markets Finfra targets first, and whether it moves beyond Indonesia within Southeast Asia.
- Further NextFin Asia investments, as the Catapult accelerator opens applications for its fourth cohort.
- How OJK’s evolving rules on digital lending shape demand for compliant, embedded credit tools.
Related on FinDeskAsia: Indonesia: Grab-backed Superbank’s pre-tax profit jumps 376%.
Sources: LHoFT via Kyodo News PR Wire (October 2026); TNGlobal (October 2026).
