Aloi

The company

Aloi helps informal entrepreneurs access business finance, with a focus on green sectors. Aloi’s technology increases the trust of lenders to lend to micro[1]entrepreneurs through automatic loan monitoring and the use of alternative credit data.

The problem

In Nepal, smallholder dairy farmers rely on rainfall for livestock feed, but changing patterns due to global warming have decreased forage and milk production. The sector struggles with finance to expand fodder production, adopt alternative energy like biogas, buy insurance and upgrade refrigeration. These micro-entrepreneurs in the informal sector find it hard to secure loans due to no credit history, proof of income or collateral, which limit their ability to adapt to climate change with technology.

GSMA Project

In March 2024, Aloi received a GSMA grant to support dairy farmers through training and loans to implement climate-smart practices like agro-forestry for fodder, biogas from manure, water conservation and solar-powered cooling. Aloi creates digital credit profiles for farmers, enabling digital loan disbursement through a monitored vendor ecosystem linked to financial institutions. Additionally, Aloi digitalises payments from milk traders to farmers to monitor income and loan repayments.

Outcomes

A partnership with Laxmi Sunrise Bank in June 2024 aims to strengthen the bank’s portfolio in the SME and MSME sectors, leveraging leads generated by Aloi to drive growth.

Traction

Aloi has more than tripled the number of users (dairy farmers with credit profiles) from 210 in June 2024 to 755 as of March 2025, including 111 women.

Founders

Sonika Manandhar – Co-founder & CTO

A message from the founder

“The biggest gap between micro-entrepreneurs and the rapidly growing green economy is access to finance. For a truly inclusive green economy that powers climate action at the last-mile, we must find ways to build trust to invest in grassroots entrepreneurship. Aloi’s technology provides a bridge of trust between the informal and formal economy.”

Team | 11 - 50 employees