Pintarnya raises $16.7M to boost job access and financial services in Indonesia, aiming to empower workers and support small businesses nationwide.
Existing investors East Ventures and Vertex Venture Southeast Asia & India contributed to the financing, which Square Peg spearheaded.
In 2022, Ghirish Pokardas, Nelly Nurmalasari, and Henry Hendrawan established Pintarnya to address two of the most significant obstacles that Indonesians encounter daily: ensuring that they have sufficient income and borrowing responsibly.
“Traditionally, Indonesian mass workers secure employment through job fairs or word of mouth, as employers are overwhelmed by paper applications and candidates receive minimal responses.”
In an interview with TechCrunch, Henry Hendrawan, co-founder of Pintarnya, stated that individuals are frequently restricted to borrowing from family and acquaintances or predatory lenders with severe collection practices.
“In an effort to expedite the hiring process, we utilize artificial intelligence to digitize job matching. Additionally, we offer employees safer, healthier lending alternatives that are tailored to their financial capabilities, rather than escalating their debt.”
These workers face challenges in obtaining formal financial services due to their lack of verifiable income and official employment documentation, as approximately 59% of Indonesia’s 150 million workforce is employed in the informal sector.
Pintarnya addresses this obstacle by collaborating with asset-backed lenders to provide secured loans, which are secured by collateral such as bullion, electronics, or vehicles, Hendrawan explained.
The platform presently serves over 10 million job-seeker users and 40,000 employers nationwide since its seed funding in 2022. Hendrawn observed that its revenue has increased by nearly fivefold year over year and anticipates that it will achieve break-even by the end of the year.
The majority of Pintarnya’s users are between the ages of 21 and 40, and the majority possess a high school diploma or a diploma that falls short of a university degree. Given the substantial number of informal and blue-collar laborers in Indonesia, the startup intends to concentrate on this underserved segment.
“During the development of employment services, we realized that our users required more than just employment opportunities; they required access to financial services that conventional banks were unable to offer,” stated Hendrawan.
“In an effort to expedite the hiring process, we utilize artificial intelligence to digitize job matching. Additionally, we offer employees safer, healthier lending alternatives that are tailored to their financial capabilities, rather than escalating their debt.”
Although Indonesia already has job platforms such as JobStreet, Kalibrr, and Glints, these platforms predominantly target white-collar positions, which account for a small percentage of the workforce, according to Hendrawan.
The platform of Pintarnya is designed explicitly for blue-collar workers, providing them with customized experiences that include quick-apply options for walk-in interviews, affordable e-learning on relevant skills, in-app opportunities for supplemental income, and seamless connections to financial services such as loans.
The same trend is evident in Indonesia’s fintech sector, which similarly targets white-collar or upper-middle-class consumers.
Existing fintech providers frequently neglect blue-collar workers when employing conventional credit scoring models for loans, which depend on consistent monthly income and bank account activity, Hendrawan explained.
When queried about the most sought-after fintech services, Hendrawan responded, “Lending is the most sought-after financial service among Pintarnya’s users today, due to their employment status.”
We plan to transition them to micro-savings and investments by developing innovative products in collaboration with our partners.
Pintarnya will be able to enhance its platform technology and expand its financial service offerings by forming strategic partnerships with the new funding.
The co-founders perceive substantial growth opportunities in the local market, as the majority of Indonesian workers are employed in blue-collar and informal sectors.
They are also amenable to investigating regional expansion when the opportunity arises, drawing on their extensive experience in overseeing businesses throughout Southeast Asia.
“Our goal is for Pintarnya to serve as the everyday companion that enables Indonesians to not only survive today, but also to plan, develop, and enhance their lives in the future.”
Hendrawan stated, “We envision Pintarnya as the premier super app for Indonesia’s workers in five years, serving as a trusted partner throughout their life journey, rather than solely for income generation.”
“We aspire to be the initial destination for individuals seeking employment, a location that facilitates the development of their abilities, and a dependable resource for financial decision-making.”
