With FinTech’s support in full force, e-commerce sees $12 billion in revenue this holiday season, BFSI News, ET BFSI
The country is set to witness the first full-fledged holiday after over two years of Covid restrictions. According to experts, consumer sentiment has not been dampened despite high inflation, and thus the demand outlook looks very positive.
The industry players are prepared for the upcoming annual shopping spree and forecast the market results.
“The e-commerce segment is expected to have a turnover of ~$12 billion during this festive season with high demand across the country,” said Manish Lunia, Co-Founder, Flexiloans.com.
“With customers exploring and celebrating with high fervor, pent-up demand appears to be at its peak post-Covid. This is expected to boost business momentum,” he added.
All major e-commerce players like Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Meesho and Snapdeal have kicked off the festive shopping season with their annual big sales and fintech players like FlexiLoans.com are witnessing demand from over 500+ cities and towns from e-commerce vendors .
The platform has seen a 300% increase in lead inquiries with almost 3 times more loan disbursements expected during this period.
“Usually the festive season results in 25-30% excess demand for credit, but this year we expect a 50%+ increase in credit for the season. ~55% of the new potential customers will come from tier 2-4 cities and towns in India,” he so.
Small ticket loans, bonds and gaming finance
The FinTech industry has witnessed a remarkable growth in the demand for small ticket size loans in the current financial year.
To serve the larger population, NBFCs are tying up with e-commerce firms for easy access to finance for their customers, helping them increase sales, especially during the festive season, explained Bhavin Patel, co-founder and CEO of LenDenClub.
This means that their end customers can get the best offers at the right moment, and in turn help themselves with increased loan repayments. With LenDenClub, e-commerce players have hit a double whammy since the company has partnered with various platforms to finance customers’ purchases, he added.
“We’ve also partnered with KarmaLife, which provides credit to workers in the gig economy, which are e-commerce vendors in this case, with working capital to better manage their day-to-day cash flows and become more financially robust,” he said.
Buy-now-pay-later is expected to increase
We have seen a 50-60% increase in BNPL spend during the festival season. Travel, consumer electronics and home furnishings tend to be the most popular categories and witness the highest traction, highlighted Sashank Rishyasringa, co-founder and MD, axio (formerly Capital Float).
“Customers are choosing simple and affordable financing options like Pay Later to make ambitious purchases, while exclusive promotions run by major e-commerce companies and D2C brands provide added impetus,” he said.
ETBFSI had earlier reported that BNPL volumes in the first half of 2022 saw growth of about 17 percent
With business demand returning from across the country, offline and online stores are witnessing high BNPL demand facilitated by payment gateways, fintechs and banks, Lunia said on similar lines while adding that 3-4 times higher BNPL disbursements are expected this year compared to before the covid period.
