Digital lending as a sector showed positive growth in the September quarter of the current fiscal year, according to a report published by FACE (Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment), an industry body comprising 37 fintech companies.
Lending platforms Kreditbee, Fibe, Loantap and Vivriti Capital are members of FACE. The body has applied to the Reserve Bank of India for an SRO (self regulatory organisation) licence.
The report estimated that around three crore loans were disbursed during the quarter by these 37 companies, of which 28 are either NBFCs themselves or have an inhouse NBFC.
The number has grown exponentially over the last two years from around Rs 176 crore in the September quarter of fiscal 2023 and 96 crore the year prior.
Overall, Rs 31,692 crore was disbursed by the sector, with nine companies showing more than 100% growth year on year.
The average ticket size of loans disbursed by fintech startups is around Rs 10,000. The report noted that companies differed a lot in terms of their segmental focus and their average loan ticket size. Of the 37 companies, around 12 operate in the average ticket size range of Rs 10,000-25,000.
In the first half of the current fiscal year over 1 lakh complaints were received by fintech lenders, of which 99% have been resolved. Most of the complaints were issues related to credit bureaus or apps. Of the complaints analysed, 8% were over recovery issues.
The RBI wants the fintech industry to grow in a regulated fashion and has encouraged the formation of an SRO. However, not much has moved beyond some companies applying for the licence. Last week, the RBI also spoke about fintech lenders creating a repository, where fintechs can share data voluntarily.
