Finberg to raise USD 25m for new IFR fund

After early investments from its first core fintech fund generated a 7x multiple through exits and markups, Finberg decided to transform from a corporate venture player to a multi-fund management company welcoming external LPs, including asset management company Oyak Portfoy, to strengthen its value proposition, Elgin said.

Domiciled in Istanbul, Turkey, Finberg plans to raise USD 25m and so has so far raised USD 10m, with plans to finalise all commitments by the end of 2022. However, it could extend both the fund's target and fundraising timeline if it receives further investor interest, Elgin added.

Finberg has already put the IFR fund to work, investing USD 5m in local retail and fintech startups, including Compay, Mobilet, BiAltın and EasyCep, while also increasing its exposure to fintech with investments in Figopara and Switzerland-based Colendi, Elgin said.

With a ticket size of between USD 500,000 and USD 1m, Finberg will invest in 5-10 more startups at the seed and early stages in the next two years. Stakes will range between 10% and 30%. It plans to invest in two or three more startups before year-end, deploying USD 1m.

As the manager of two funds, Core Fintech Fund and IFR Fund, Finberg has deployed USD 35m in aggregate from both vehicles, and the current valuation of investments is reaching USD 1.2bn. This excludes groceries delivery platform Getir, which has the potential to become a so-called "decacorn" (valued in excess of USD 10bn) in the short term, Elgin noted.

A newly established partnership with Fiba Portfoy will also allow Finberg to begin functioning as an external fund manager, with several new investments to be announced soon, he said, without elaborating further.

Core fintech fund
Established in 2018, Finberg started as a fintech-focused corporate venture investor to leverage the combined strengths of Turkey-based Fibabanka and Fiba Group.

With its initial USD 50m core fintech fund, it has so far invested a total of USD 30m in six startups and a VC fund, Elgin said. Investments include Getir, payment technology company Birlesik Odeme, cloud-based accounting application BizimHesap and online automotive marketplace GarajSepeti.

Finberg has also expanded its regional focus to include international startups such as UK-based stock trading and banking app Invstr, and remittance transfer service TapTap Send. It has also acted like a fund-of-funds by investing in vehicles managed by VCs like Revo Capital, Elgin said.

So far it has fully exited from Bizim Hesap and GarajSepeti in June this year, and conducted a partial exit from Birlesik Odeme from its first fund.

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