Access to finance and credit is one of the most towering challenges for Indian micro, small and medium enterprises. With COVID-19 bringing several predicaments to the ecosystem, the lending business has also gone for a toss.
In a conversation with YourStory as part of the series ‘Money Matters with Shradha Sharma’, Harshvardhan Lunia, CEO and Co-founder of Lendingkart Technologies, elucidated his learning experiences from the crisis and how his business has been coping during these unprecedented times.
Lendingkart is an Ahmedabad-based digital lending platform for small and medium businesses.
Plan the unexpected
Harshvardhan said that pains and trials are a part of every entrepreneur’s business journey, but currently, they are focusing on surviving the crisis. He said, “There are people who have to worry about just one business but we have to worry about multiple businesses who are our partners.”
He explained that the beauty about the lending business is that there is never a dearth of demand, however, he also observed that the demand right now is mixed.
He added “People who want money to pay taxes and salaries, and those who want to be on the good side of the law have agreed to take loans, but there are also those who don’t want to take any money.”
He added “People who want money to pay taxes and salaries, and those who want to be on the good side of the law have agreed to take loans, but there are also those who don’t want to take any money.”
Harshvardhan also talked about how businesses lack a crisis management strategy which puts them in a vulnerable position when a catastrophe occurs. “The reaction is too much. This is because we don’t plan the unexpected. And when it (the unexpected) happens, we are overwhelmed.”
He added that one of the things he learnt from COVID-19 is “how to plan the unexpected.”
Watch the full video interview below:
