The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted regulatory approval for Kuhoo Finance, a fintech platform that specializes in student loans, to function as a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC).

The permit is expected to greatly increase Kuhoo's lending capability, allowing the company to provide education loans up to Rs 2 crore for a range of academic fields.

"Securing the NBFC licence is a game-changer for Kuhoo and the students we serve," says Prashant A Bhonsle, Co-founder, Kuhoo Finance.

"We are now better positioned than ever to fulfill our mission of making quality education accessible to all, regardless of financial constraints. The right student loan, given at the right time, can transform not just an individual's life but entire generations," Prashant says.

Kuhoo Finance hopes to broaden its product line to accommodate executive education and upskilling initiatives with the new regulatory status. In order to increase accessibility for students throughout India, the company also intends to fortify its alliances with academic institutions and financial organizations.

"With this NBFC licence, our investor, WestBridge Capital, remains highly committed to our growth. We are also in discussions with banks and financial institutions to raise debt for further lending," adds Prashant.

Before securing the NBFC licence, Kuhoo was primarily acting as a loan facilitator, partnering with banks and NBFCs to originate, underwrite, and process education loans. Over the past two and a half years, the company has processed over 100,000 student applications and facilitated loans worth more than Rs 300 crore for 15,000 borrowers.

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During this period, Kuhoo focused on developing its proprietary technology stack, leveraging AI and data science to assess students’ employability and future earning potential.

"We built our tech infrastructure to streamline the student loan process, enabling quick eligibility checks and digital loan disbursals," Prashant explains.