HSBC increases credit commitment for Indian startups to $1 billion, and launches an innovation banking unit

Global lender HSBC has increased its lending to Indian startups from $600 million to $1 billion, underscoring the growing confidence in the country’s innovation ecosystem. | Photo credit: Tyrone Siu/Reuters

Foreign lender HSBC announced on Thursday that it is increasing its lending to the young ecosystem of Indian startups from the current $600 million to $1 billion.

The UK-headquartered lender, which has been actively lending to the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem for more than five years, has formally launched its innovation banking vertical.

Dave Sabow, global head for the industry vertical, said India joins select regions such as the US, Israel, China, Australia and Britain where innovation banking is active.

“We see that India’s relevance as a global hub for innovation will only be further strengthened in the coming years. Therefore, our ambition is to continue investing in this sector and be part of India’s ongoing economic transformation and ultimately increase sources of global capital to support what we believe is one of the most exciting markets in which we operate,” he added.

Lending from Series A to IPO

According to Sabow, the bank will make loans to companies once they raise Series A funding and hold them until they list, adding that much of the push for the program began after HSBC’s acquisition of troubled Silicon Valley Bank, which handles its relationships with the venture capital ecosystem.

The bank even lends to companies that may be burning cash, he said, adding that the interest charged is cheaper than a private credit fund.

Currently, about 80 percent of the $600 million in commitments, or about $500 million, have already been committed, the bank said, stressing that the portfolio’s performance is very satisfactory.

“I think the billion dollar mark is an intermediate step. In my view, the startup ecosystem is only going to get bigger and bigger and the need for capital is only going to get bigger,” HSBC India banking head Ajay Sharma said while declining to give medium-term targets.

Published on October 10, 2025