Australian small and medium enterprise (SME) challenger bank Judo Bank has released the details to its second equity funding round – totalling $400 million.

Claimed to be the largest individual private funding round by an Australian start-up, Judo doubled its initial funding target of $200m and now boasts
an overall funding figure of $540 million.

Judo Bank’s co-founder and co-CEO, David Hornery, explained that the support from investors will reinforce the firms “mission to transform SME lending in Australia.”

Hornery explained: “The strength of this latest funding round clearly demonstrates the investment community’s understanding of and support for Judo Bank’s truly relationship-focused offering to small and medium sized businesses – a proposition that has been materially lacking in the market for many years.

“When combined with the wholesale debt lines secured from Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs, and the strength of our recently launched deposit business, it adds further and substantial depth to Judo Bank’s provision of funding to Australia’s small and medium sized businesses.”

Launched in March 2018, the fintech focuses on lending to Australia’s SMEs that have an annual turnover of up to $20 million.

The neobank secured its full authorised deposit-taking institution (ADI) licence in April 2019, following a re-brand from Judo Capital to Judo Bank.

Fellow Australian challenger Volt Bank recently decided upon FIS to run its payments operations.