Fintech startup Pelocal said it has raised $5 million in its Series A funding round led by UNLEASH Capital Partners and Unicorn India Ventures, with participation from prominent angel investors.

The Noida-based startup will use the fresh capital to boost its existing use cases, accelerate product development and push its go-to-market strategy, it said in a statement.

Pelocal was founded in 2021 by Vivekanand Tripathi and Vikas Garg. The startup said that its AI-powered platform helps enterprise embeds payments directly into WhatsApp conversations that can be used for ticketing, collections, customer acquisition, and servicing. The startup is also building tech infra products for the banking and financial services enterprises. 

“Until now, digital communications have largely been limited to peer-to-peer messages or one-way notifications," said Tripathi, co-founder and CEO, Pelocal.

"Our vision is to bring last-mile payments to the masses via WhatsApp by leveraging AI and advanced technologies," he added.

Natsuki Sugai, managing partner, UNLEASH Capital Partners, noted that with AI at its core, the company is solving a large-scale problem for Indian businesses and has the potential to scale globally.

Pelocal had previously raised $2 million in its seed round in October 2024, led by Unicorn India Ventures.

India’s fintech sector raised $889 million in the first half of 2025, down 26% drop from the previous six months and a 5% dip year-on-year, according to Tracxn’s Geo Semi-Annual India FinTech Report H1 2025.