Salmon Group Ltd., a financial technology firm operating a financing company and bank in the Philippines, announced on Wednesday it has completed an $88 million fundraising round. The company said the funding will be used to expand its fintech offerings and increase access to credit in Southeast Asia.
Salmon Group operates the Rural Bank of Sta. Rosa (Laguna), Inc. and Sunprime Finance Inc. in the Philippines.
The funding consists of a $60-million drawdown from a 3-year, $150-million Nordic bond framework agreement and $28 million in new equity.
New equity investors include US institutional investors and Antler Elevate, along with existing shareholders such as the International Finance Corp., Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund ADQ/Lunate, Northstar, Back in Black Capital and prominent Filipino investors.
The equity round was led by Spice Expeditions, LP, a venture capital firm focused on global fintech. Spice was founded by Nick Huber, a former partner at Ribbit Capital.
The bond transaction marks the first Nordic bond issuance by a Southeast Asian technology firm. Salmon stated that the combined $88 million funding is one of the largest recent investments in the Philippine financial technology industry, positioning it among the top challenger fintech players in the country.
Raffy Montemayor, co-founder of Salmon and a veteran of the Philippine banking industry, said the funding “is a testament to the trust our customers and investors place in Salmon’s mission to drive financial inclusion in the Philippines.”
“Millions of Filipinos still struggle with limited access to fair and transparent credit, while traditional banks often fail to meet their needs. We’ve built Salmon to change that — by leveraging AI and cutting-edge technology, we’re making credit more accessible, deposits more rewarding, and financial services simpler for every Filipino,” said Montemayor.
Montemayor cited Salmon’s highly-rated financial app, over 3,000 partner stores nationwide and a time deposit rate of 8.88 percent per annum. “With this new funding, we will expand our reach, introduce more innovative products, and accelerate our vision of building the most customer-centric and innovative financial institutions in the Philippines,” he said.
