Arya.ag eyes IPO after securing $81 million in Series D funding

Indian agritech company Arya.ag has raised $81 million in an all-equity Series D round—a late-stage venture funding round—led by GEF Capital Partners. According to the company, more than 70% of the funding was primary capital. The Noida-based startup remains profitable despite falling global crop prices. The World Bank has warned that global agricultural commodity prices are falling due to risks like extreme weather, input costs, trade disruptions, and biofuel policy shifts.

Founded by former ICICI Bank executives Prasanna Rao, Anand Chandra, and Chattanathan Devarajan, Arya.ag aggregates and stores about $3 billion in grain annually, representing roughly 3% of India’s national output. The platform reaches between 850,000 and 900,000 farmers across 60% of India’s districts, utilizing a network of about 12,000 leased warehouses. The company facilitates around $1.5 billion in loans annually, keeping its rate of bad loans—known as non-performing assets (NPAs)—below 0.5%. Arya.ag disburses more than ₹110 billion in loans to farmers each year. Between ₹25 billion and ₹30 billion of this comes from its own balance sheet via its non-banking finance arm, with the rest originated for partner banks. These loans carry interest rates of about 12.5% to 12.8%, compared to bank lending rates of around 11% to 12% and commission agent rates of 24% to 36%.

The company’s revenue is diversified, with storage contributing about 50–55%, finance contributing 25–30%, and the remainder coming from commerce. For the fiscal year ended March 2025, Arya.ag’s financial performance included:

• Net revenue of ₹4.5 billion.
• First-half revenue in the current financial year rising about 30% to ₹3 billion.
• Profit after tax of ₹340 million last year, which has risen a further 39% so far this year.

To manage risk, the company uses mark to market—an accounting method that adjusts an asset’s recorded value to reflect its current market value—to trigger margin calls. Co-founder Prasanna Rao explained: “You’re not immune to risks. But because your lending is completely secured against commodities, it will never happen that the prices will fall by 90%. You already have a margin of 30%, and with your mark to market, you’ve been able to control your NPAs and defaults.”

Arya.ag, which has over 1,200 full-time employees, plans to use the capital to scale its technology deployments, including smart farm centers and digital tracking tools. Rao stated that the company is aiming to be IPO-ready in 18 to 20 months. Beyond India, the startup plans to expand selectively through a software-led model, with some technology already deployed in parts of Southeast Asia and Africa. Avendus advised on the round.

Why it matters

Arya.ag’s ability to remain profitable while scaling in a volatile commodities market demonstrates the viability of tech-enabled, asset-light agricultural infrastructure in emerging economies. By securing loans against physical grain and avoiding direct commodity bets, the platform offers a resilient model for agricultural finance outside traditional banking networks.