Looking to raise funds for your start-up? Follow these government schemes

Government of India is taking initiatives to foster entrepreneurial spirit in the country. Scores of policies and schemes have been unveiled in the past few years, signalling the young, budding, and the experienced alike. Unfortunately, while these schemes are explored and tapped into by older start-up businesses, fresh new start-ups often miss out on these government-sponsored opportunities. To remedy that, here’s an exhaustive list of schemes that new start-ups on the block can explore:

Launched in the year 2015, this scheme has helped millions of entrepreneurs, businessmen, shopkeepers and cottage industry operators avail loans of up to Rs.10 lakh. A businessman looking to raise funds through this scheme can approach commercial banks, NBFCs or small finance banks. The loans rolled out under this scheme are categorised under three brackets, those of ‘Shishu’ i.e. a child, ‘Kishore’ i.e. an adolescent and ‘Tarun’ i.e. a youth to indicate the maturity of the business and the funding needs of the firm.

Instituted by the Ministry of Small Scale Industries (SSI), this scheme aims at equipping SSI units with upgraded technology through easy loan facilities. Under the scheme, a businessman operating an SSI unit can access 15% upfront capital subsidy on finance provided by the commercial banks, regional rural banks and state finance bodies. A firm is expected to receive a maximum of Rs. 1 crore as a loan amount.

Under this scheme, entrepreneurs can raise anywhere between Rs. 10 lakh and Rs. 1 crore as loans for their greenfield ventures. To be eligible for this loan, the entrepreneur must belong to the SC/ST community or be a woman entrepreneur above 18 years of age. Further, the venture must be new and must be looking to operate in manufacturing, services, agro-allied activities or in the trading sector.

Taking the idea of Make in India to its fruitful realisation, this scheme helps any new MSME venture raise a maximum of Rs. 50 lakh, while old MSMEs can raise an amount of Rs. 25 lakh. The scheme was devised to help firms upgrade their technological competence and build premium manufacturing skills. Do bear in mind that the eligible MSMEs will have to pay 0.5% of the disbursed loan as fee to SIDBI.

This scheme provides a much-needed boost to bio-technology firms and start-ups, with the aim of using innovation to resolve some of the most pressing problems that impair the social sector. For start-ups at the Proof of Concept stage, a grant-in-aid of Rs. 50 lakh is available for a period of up to 18 months. Meanwhile, for start-ups at the validation stage, the aid amount remains the same but the timeline is raised from 18 to 24 months.

ICICI Bank has also come up with “iStartup 2.0” to help start-ups with comprehensive business solutions. It offers a range of banking services and further beyond, to help entrepreneurs like yourself set up your firm and digitise rapidly. It also caters to specific needs of your start-up business through calibrated industry specific solutions. Whether you are a new start-up or in the growth stage, iStartup 2.0 is the right solution for your business.

Click here to know about iStartup 2.0.

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