SBI led Solv’s $40m Series A funding round in June 2022
Medium to long term growth story of Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) industry in India remains strong and is projected to record a CAGR of 41.2% during 2022-2028, according to a ResearchAndMarkets report.
The BNPL Gross Merchandise Value in the country will increase from US$7,204.5 million in 2021 to reach US$97,717.0 million by 2028. It is expected to grow by 71.5% on an annual basis to reach US$12,355.8 million in 2022.
The BNPL market is the fastest growing industry around the world. As consumers further shifts towards online payments, the adoption of the BNPL payment method has surged significantly in the country over the last two years.
According to a report from Experian, BNPL transactions in India surged by 21% in H1 2022, which is 3% more than the global growth.
Although the deferred payment method still lags behind mobile wallets and credit cards, the growing awareness and rising usage, particularly among high-income households, suggests that the payment method is on the verge of becoming mainstream in the country.
“As India continues to move toward building a robust digital ecosystem, the outlook for the BNPL market remains strong from the medium to long-term perspective,” said the report “India Buy Now Pay Later Business and Investment Opportunities”.
However, from a short-term perspective, new regulatory norms can impact market growth, the report said on 15 Nov 2022.
In July 2022, the Reserve Bank of India banned the loading of prepaid payment instruments with credit lines, thereby alarming the rapidly growing BNPL industry in India.
While the announcement is expected to have an impact in the short term, the regulated BNPL market is projected to lead to more innovation in the sector as players work on a more beneficial solution to fix the gaps in the sector.
To help small and medium-sized businesses in India expand their operations, several players, including B2B e-commerce firms, are entering into the BNPL space, the segment which has been growing in popularity among both consumers as well as businesses.
Consequently, to expand their B2B BNPL service to more and more businesses, firms are raising funding rounds in India.
Solv, the e-commerce marketplace for suppliers and buyers in the MSMEs segment, had raised US$40 million in its Series A funding round in June 2022. It was led by SBI Holdings.
Notably, the firm is planning to use the funding for further expanding its BNPL loans to more merchants in the country. As of June 2022, the firm has more than 220,000 KYC-verified MSMEs registered on its platform.
The firm has also developed a Solv scoring system, an alternative credit score, which allows thin-filed MSMEs to access loans on-demand. The e-commerce platform sells groceries, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), electronics and accessories, and home furnishing products, among others.
In H1 2022, the firm attained a gross merchandise value (GMV) of more than US$260 million with over 60% average repeat purchases. By the end of 2022, the firm is planning to reach US$500 million GMV.
As the BNPL market, both B2C and B2B continues to grow in India, the publisher expects more firms to raise funding rounds. Moreover, as foreign players eye an expansion into the Indian market, consolidation trends will lead to more investment from global BNPL players in India over the next three to four years.
Banking firms are forging strategic alliances with BNPL providers to offer deferred payment services to their customers in India
Globally, an increasing number of traditional banks are entering the BNPL segment, either through launching their own service or partnering with pure-play BNPL providers.
In India, similar trends are visible, where banking institutions are forging strategic alliances with BNPL providers.
In June 2022, ICICI Bank, one of the leading private banks in India, announced that the firm had entered into a strategic partnership with ZestMoney to add a BNPL feature for its customers. Under the partnership, ICICI Bank is integrating the BNPL service offered by ZestMoney into its cardless EMI product.
Consumers using the cardless EMI product offered by ICICI Bank can use the BNPL service to make purchases of up to US$12,900 or Rs.1,000,000. Initially, the service is made available for online transactions; however, the bank is expected to launch the same for in-store purchases soon.
Notably, ZestMoney is one of the leading BNPL players in the country, serving more than 17 million consumers. It has also raised investment from Zip Co, the Australian BNPL firm, in 2021.
ICICI Bank is not the only private banking institution to introduce BNPL service for its customers. Some of the other players, such as Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank, have also launched the payment feature.
The publisher expects more banks to follow suit and launch a BNPL service for their customers over the next three to four years in India.
Every year, Indians spend billions of dollars on paying for health and medical bills. Moreover, with 3 out of 4 Indians uninsured, according to the Indian government, the entire medical cost is borne by Indians, which is paid through their savings.
To allow Indians to spread their medical expenditure over a period of time, several BNPL startups have entered the market by targeting the healthcare sector in the country.
QubeHealth, which offers healthcare now and pay later products, has partnered with several corporate firms. Companies like Tavant Technologies and SmartWorks, among others, have collaborated with QubeHealth for its QubeHealth-Card, which allows employees to use it for their health and medical-related expenses that are not covered in their company-provided health insurance.
SaveIN, another BNPL startup focusing on the healthcare sector, is expanding rapidly in the country. The firm also raised US$3 million in July 2022, taking its total seed funding round to US$7 million. SaveIN is planning to use the funding round to grow its network of healthcare providers across the country while also investing a part of it into product development.
From the short to medium-term perspective, the publisher expects the BNPL market to record strong growth in the healthcare sector, as Indians are spending billions of dollars on health expenditure every year.
The BNPL market is led by:
Simpl
ZestMoney
LazyPay
Capital Float
PineLabs
Paytm Postpaid
OlaMoney Postpaid
Amazon Pay Later
Flipkart Pay Later. fiinews.com