Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation Limited

Choose the scheme that fits your stage

• Scale Up Funding is for startups that already have revenue or commercial operations, or that have used seed-stage assistance well.
• WE Funding is for women-owned businesses that already run a manufacturing or service unit using machinery or equipment.
• Share Investment is equity rather than a loan, and it suits companies with a larger project cost.

Prepare before you apply

• Check the registration. Scale Up Funding expects a private limited company registered with KSUM or DPIIT.
• Show the promoter's contribution. Scale Up Funding needs at least 30 per cent of project cost brought in and spent before the first tranche.
• Gather three years of turnover records for WE Funding, because the page sets a minimum average annual turnover.

How applications work

• Download the form for your scheme from the Application Forms page, or submit online through the K-SWIFT Portal.
• Ask the district officer for help with the form before you submit.

What reviewers look for

• The page gives no sanction timeline, so ask KSIDC how long a decision takes.
• Interest rates on the page are shown before any prompt-payment rebate and may be revised, so confirm the current rate before you apply.

Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) is a Government of Kerala undertaking, formed in 1961 to promote, facilitate and finance industry in the state. It is a lender and equity investor. The pages reviewed describe no incubation programme, coworking space or mentoring cohort. For a founder, the relevant parts are three financing schemes for businesses set up or scaling up in Kerala.

The three schemes that suit startups

Scale Up Funding is the scheme aimed most directly at startups. It supports innovative home-grown startups that want to scale up their operations from Kerala. The company must be a private limited company with valid registration from KSUM or DPIIT. It must also have finished product development and started commercial operations or generating revenues, or have used seed-stage assistance well. The assistance is a loan or equity, capped at 70 per cent of project cost, and the promoter must bring in and spend at least 30 per cent of project cost before the first tranche. The loan tenure is four years, including a one-year moratorium from the first disbursement. Smaller amounts can be sanctioned as a collateral-free loan backed by a personal guarantee and primary security.

WE Funding is for women entrepreneurs who already run a business. The scheme lends to manufacturing or service businesses that use industrial machinery or equipment and want to expand, modernise or diversify. The business must be owned and managed by women, holding 51% or more, and can be a proprietorship, partnership, LLP or private limited company. The page sets a minimum average annual turnover over the last three years and a different test for larger loans. The tenure is capped at six years including a moratorium of up to six months. Beneficiaries get mandatory mentorship linkage and free business development training.

Share Investment is KSIDC taking a minority equity stake in companies with strong growth potential. The page says it has a special focus on early-stage companies and technology-driven enterprises in Kerala. It also offers redeemable cumulative preference share capital to startup companies. The minimum project cost is higher for most companies than for startups, and KSIDC takes a nominee director seat on the board. Exits can be by buy-back, IPO or a strategic sale of the stake.

Who this is not for

Most of KSIDC's loan book is term lending, equipment finance, working capital, corporate loans, bill discounting, contractor loans and caravan finance for established businesses. These carry large minimum tickets and net-worth conditions. A founder with an idea or a prototype will not fit them. Scale Up Funding also is not an idea-stage scheme, because the page asks for product development to be complete and for revenue or seed-stage funds to have been used.

How to apply

The Application Forms page lists forms for its schemes, including the Scaleup Fund form. Applications can also be submitted online through the K-SWIFT Portal. For questions or help with an application, KSIDC lists designated officers by district for Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam and Kozhikode.

Where KSIDC works

KSIDC's head office is on Keston Road in Kowdiar, Thiruvananthapuram. It also manages industrial growth centres and industrial parks that offer developed land with power, water and common facilities. Those include an industrial growth centre at Kozhikode and a life sciences park in Thiruvananthapuram. The parks offer developed land, built-up space and common facilities, which is a different offer from incubation space.

Who runs it

KSIDC describes itself as a Government of Kerala undertaking. Its website lists its leadership and board of directors. For questions on these schemes, use the head office enquiry address or the district officers.