Khatabook can’t lend enough to justify its valuation

Small loan ticket size, unreliable data and a predominantly digital presence are pushing back the kiranatech startup’s efforts to monetize its business through credit.

There’s a sense of urgency towards monetization at Khatabook. 

The startup, which launched its bookkeeping software for small businesses and stores about five years ago, was in the heady years of 2020 and 2021 the darling of investors pumped up about “kiranatech”. Companies like Khatabook and rival OkCredit promised to digitize the kirana, or small neighbourhood store, through mostly free software that would displace paper ledgers, or “khata”.

The hope was always that some small percentage of the user base would pay for more advanced features, while the rest would become potential customers for other services, especially business loans. On …

Author

Samiksha Goel

Samiksha covered all things startups at The Morning Context. She joined us from The New Indian Express, where she wrote stories on the retail and food sectors. Prior to that, she had covered startups and written various business features in the Deccan Herald.

Writer

samiksha@mailtmc.com

Bengaluru