The financial sector in India is experiencing a sudden downturn in business due to the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic, with over 80 percent of businesses reporting a decreased cash flow and the lowest reported economic growth rate in six years, according to FICCI.
Ashok Kadsur, Co-founder, SignDesk
Why are financial organisations feeling the pinch?
Due to the majority of the Indian workforce working from home, financial organizations are finding it difficult to maintain a steady cash cycle to keep their business afloat, and loans are a crucial part of this cycle.
Loan processes are now facing huge disruptions in India. The reasons for this are two-fold. Firstly, both individuals and organizations have not been taking loans due to the health risks involved in the physical nature of the onboarding and loan disbursement process; secondly, businesses are trying to stay put and weather the storm by reducing their financial activities, such as taking loans.
So, how are these reasons being addressed by the financial sector?
How digitized loans are helping fix the problems
Digitising the loan disbursement process is a quick and easy solution to this two-pronged problem, as it reduces the health risks of obtaining loans to zero. This is because no physical contact with other individuals is involved in the digitized loan process.
Additionally, the low cost of onboarding and the reduced turnaround time of digitized loans lowers the financial burden of loan disbursement on banks and NBFCs, allowing them to offer loans at lower rates to businesses that are reluctant to obtain loans due to the financial implications.
Therefore, by adopting end-to-end digitizing of the loan disbursement process, banks and NBFCs are beginning to get their businesses back on track while ensuring profitability.
End-to-end loan digitisation
Start-ups are already offering end-to-end loan digitization solutions to banks and NBFCs. Chief among these start-ups is SignDesk, which offers a catalog of digital onboarding and documentation solutions to digitise loans.
SignDesk’s Video KYC product, scan.it, is used to digitally onboard customers. Following this, a loan agreement is ratified digitally through the online payment of stamp duty, via stamp.it. The loan agreement is then signed digitally and executed using ink.it, an e-signature workflow solution. Finally, payments on the loan are automated with link.it, an eMandate workflow solution.
In this way, the entire process can be completely digitized, thus reducing the risks of obtaining loans and injecting some much needed stimulus into the financial ecosystem.
Other tips for the WFH professional
While digitising loans can get your lending business through COVID-19, other steps have to be taken by professionals to ensure business productivity during this lockdown –
- Create a To-Do list to get more done
- List all your completed tasks in a daily report to analyse your productivity
- Schedule regular calls with your colleagues
- Take short breaks to do things you enjoy
- Ensure a steady internet connection and power supply
- Create a work corner for yourself where you can sit comfortably
- Go for short strolls around the house to keep your body active
Remember to take precautions to keep both yourself and your business safe during these tough times.
Views addressed in this article are the personal opinion of Ashok Kadsur, Co-founder, SignDesk.
Enquire at: sales@SignDesk.com
