Thiruvananthapuram: State-owned Kerala Financial Corporation (KFC) has come out with what is billed as the biggest financial support program for funding up to Rs 10 crore for startups. The Scheme namely  'KFC Startup Kerala'  will support startups in all stages of their growth fight from proof of concept to prototype development, product trials, market-entry, commercialization and scaling up. In addition,  there will be venture debt scheme and provision to finance purchase orders received by startups.

Commenting on the launch, Sanjay Kaul, CMD of Kerala Financial Corporation, said the assistance will be Rs.25 lakh for productization, Rs 50 lakh for commercialization and Rs 100 lakh for scaling up. Under the scheme, "Loans will be provided at concessional interest rates of 7 percent without any collateral. The repayment period will be 60 months including a moratorium period of maximum 12 months. Startups need to apply online at www.kfc.org. Processing will be done centrally and the sanction will be considered by an expert committee," said Kaul.  "The scarcity of capital and inadequate availability of credit facilities are the major problems confronting startups. Entrepreneurs should be encouraged through incentives and assistance on easy terms", added Kaul.

The loan will be extended to set up the workshop, setting up infrastructure, computers, servers, software,  purchase necessary machinery,  purchase raw materials, working funds, working capital, cloud expenses, licenses, permits, consultancy charges, marketing expenses, preliminary and preoperative expenses, interest during the implementation period.

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