Flipkart Wholesale, the digital B2B marketplace of the Flipkart Group recently announced the launch of its latest credit programs. These credit programs are meant to help kirana stores by helping them manage their working capital requirement. In addition to this, the programs will also aid these businesses to grow, as per the announcement made by the company. This plan was undertaken to help address local pain points for kiranas in India. The programs will use technology to address these concerns and make the entire process of their businesses that much easier. The credit offerings include ‘Easy Credit’ which is in partnership with IDFC First Bank.
Adarsh Menon the senior Vice President and Head of Flipkart Wholesale, said, “Our key goal at Flipkart Wholesale is to make business easier for kiranas & retailers and boost their growth journey. We believe our new credit plan is tailored to solve local challenges that kiranas in India face and will help them manage their cash flow and improve their purchase experience on our platform, thereby ensuring that the benefits of digitisation trickle to the entire B2B retail ecosystem.”
The company ensures that, through the new credit offerings of the programs, the kiranas can avail said credit in just about two minutes and at zero cost. This would be carried out via the end-to-end digital onboarding partnership with the company’s lending partner IDFC First Bank, along with other fintech institutions which the company did not mention in the release. The credit line for the scheme will range from Rs 5,000 up to Rs 2 lakh with an interest-free period of up to 14 days. The company also mentioned that the kiranas can also avail the benefits of several flexible repayment options. These can be carried out in cash transactions or online transfers. In the event of cancellations, there are instant refunds available. To round it all up, the programs will help keep a tab on the kirana’s credit balance as well as its bills.
Amit Kumar the Head of Retail Liabilities and Branch Banking at IDFC FIRST Bank, said, “India’s kirana stores account for over two-thirds of the country’s retail landscape. This traditional trade is now evolving in terms of retail formats and business models. As a bank with a digital-first approach and focus on serving the retail ecosystem, we are keen to contribute to the growth of this segment. The partnership with Flipkart gives us an opportunity to enable kiranas to access formal credit and scale up business.”
Flipkart Wholesale, as a company, serves over 1.5 million customers across India. This clientele includes the likes of kiranas, retailers, hotels, restaurants, cafeterias, offices and institutions. The Flipkart Group which was incorporated in 2007, stands as one of the country’s largest digital commerce entities in the industry. It also has top subsidiaries under it. These include Flipkart, Flipkart Wholesale, Myntra and Cleartrip. It should also be noted that the group is a majority shareholder in PhonePe, which is itself a leading digital payments platform in India.
IDFC Bank on the other hand was created as recent as 2018 and since its relatively short tenure, the banks had provided over 30 million loans and serves across 60,000 villages, cities and towns. The bank also has a significant network as it maintains 601 branches, 161 asset service centres, 609 ATMs and 94 recyclers as well as 623 rural business correspondent centres across the country. It also has a next-generation net and mobile banking platform and a 24/7 Customer Care services centre.
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