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Context is everything.
Detailed stories on technology startups, business and economic current affairs.
Detailed stories on technology startups, business and economic current affairs.
High returns, RBI-regulated comfort, and easy withdrawals drew investors in. Now, with repayments drying up, the fintech platform, its NBFC partner, and the regulator are pointing fingers—leaving customers to chase their own money.
Rajat Khandelwal, a 27-year-old software professional from Rajasthan, thought he had found a rare sweet spot in May 2023. The pitch on MobiKwik’s app was hard to ignore: a peer-to-peer lending product that promised returns of up to 12%—far higher than fixed deposits—along with the flexibility to withdraw money anytime.
Like many first-time investors, his instinct was caution. “Too good to be true,” he recalls thinking. So, he tested the waters. He invested Rs 10,000 and the platform delivered. Returns came in exactly as promised, with 1% credited each month, translating to an annualized 12%.
That early validation changed everything. …
Lenders stand to gain a lot more than borrowers in the current challenging market environment
The central bank’s shift to a 100% collateral requirement threatens to erode leverage, reduce volumes and force a consolidation across prop desks.
An NBFC licence and a string of approvals give the fintech firm a fresh shot at relevance. But patchy execution, intense competition and a stagnant core cast doubt on whether it can capitalize on the opportunity.
