India is a population of 1.3 billion people, most of which lives in its 664,369 villages with little or no access to formal financial solutions. The situation becomes even more crucial if these villages are on the borders or in sensitive areas. These areas are high-security zones that have their own peculiarities like remoteness, unusual terrain and erratic weather conditions, making it difficult for financial services to reach the masses. As a result, inhabitants have to face challenges in accessing cash or payment services and are deprived of the benefits of even the government-sponsored schemes. With the non-availability of digital banking due to inconsistent internet connectivity and the absence of steady transportation, villagers often end up investing a day and spending considerable money to travel to a nearby town just to withdraw or deposit cash. So, it is imperative that there is a robust network in place, both digital and assisted, to allow the beneficiaries to avail them.

For a more inclusive growth, it is important to create an ecosystem that serves the large unbanked population in these areas in a format that the masses can easily access, trust and consume. PayNearby is trying to solve this problem by turning the nearby trusted local stores into efficient digital touchpoints offering essential banking services. The company is porting this local trust and layering it with the right tools, training and technology to universalize digital payments in India. In sync with this, PayNearby’s micro-entrepreneurs are now serving in the neighbourhoods of Jammu & Kashmir, in Sela Pass – one of the highest military and civilian operational fields on the India-China border and at Lakhpat – India’s last village on the India-Pakistan border to bring essential financial services to the areas.

Speaking on the development, Anand Kumar Bajaj, Founder, MD & CEO, PayNearby said, “PayNearby is on a mission to make financial and digital services available to everyone, everywhere. Our retail partners in the hinterlands are a step in the direction of our commitment towards the agenda of financial empowerment at the last mile in the country. In remote areas, the number of ATMs is often far and few. PayNearby’s entry into these areas will ensure that the local population gets cash withdrawal and other basic banking services near their house through our retail partners. For example, as per the PMJDY, J&K has more than 25 lakh beneficiaries of which more than 21 lakhs reside in rural and semi-urban areas. Now, people in these areas wouldn’t have to travel long distances or stand in a queue at a bank branch to avail of these government benefits.”

“At PayNearby, we believe that financial empowerment is only as successful as its remotest citizen and we are delighted that today PayNearby is present in every terrain from 42°C in Lakhpat, Kachchh to – 10°C in Sela Pass, Tawang to the remote areas of J&K. We will continue this endeavour to include more and more villages in our network till every village in Bharat is connected. PayNearby, Zidd Aage Badhne Ki,” Mr. Bajaj added.

Currently, have already signed up 200 partners locally who will work with us for the last mile advancement of Kashmir. PayNearby, through its tech-backed DaaS (Distribution as a Service) network of 50+ lakh micro-entrepreneurs, serves 75% of India across 17,600+ PIN codes and enables services like cash withdrawal, remittance, Aadhaar Banking, bill payment and recharges, savings, travel, digital payments, insurance and more, at a store nearby. Through retailer empowerment, the company ensures that each and every citizen finds financial and digital services in their locality, gets on the digital payment bandwagon and gradually on the path to uncash India.

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Digital lending continues to witness a massive growth in India led by technology advancements,  rising smartphone penetration and proliferation of financial and transactional data which has allowed fintech companies to create unique lending models. One of the fastest growing sectors in fintech, lending is estimated to touch the $1 Tn mark in the near future. Despite which, a substantial section of the population is still left out of the credit market, simply because they don’t have enough data or no credit history. 

To bridge this gap, Neowise aims to first target individuals who have recently embarked on the journey of their professional career, for whom access to credit is a barrier due to no OR low credit score. A good credit score is a prerequisite to be able to acquire credit, and one needs to first access credit and build a repayment history inorder to obtain a credit score, a catch 22 situation.

“Our aim through the alliance with Kalandri Capital is to make credit available (a credit line of upto ₹ 50,000) using proof of consistent income as the main base, as opposed to credit score, at truly affordable rates to young professionals. Besides, our young clientele can look forward to a seamless & instant signup – a fully digital neowise money account that shall be setup within minutes; real-time access to credit; shift from credit score based lending to income based lending; interoperable instruments which can be used across all channels (ATM, POS, ECOMM) and/or to make bank transfers (UPI, IMPS, etc); along with simple and transparent pricing structure.” Said, Rohit Ramachandran, Co-Founder & CEO, Neowise Technologies.

Siddarth Padmanabhan, Co-Founder & CRO, Neowise Technologies, sheds light on the product offering said, “Using the Neowise Money Card – Rupay card, the user will be able to load funds and use the card across all channels (POS, Ecomm, ATM, etc.). Additionally, they will be provided with card control settings and other insights around transactions to augment the overall experience. And to top it all off, we shall provide all users on our platform with a credit line that can be loaded onto the Neowise card with the simple click of a button if and when they are short on funds with the repayment period spanning between 30 to 365 days.”

With the recent announcement and what is planned for the future, Akshay Shah, CEO & Director- Kalandri Capital Private Limited, said, “We are thrilled to have partnered with Neowise Technologies and are looking forward to a fruitful collaboration. One of our primary goals is to enable disruptive fintechs like Neowise to unlock new opportunities for digital credit in India.  Kalandri and Neowise will continue to work in tandem to curate further innovative and cost-effective credit instruments for customers on board on the platform.”

About Neowise Technologies:

Neowise Technologies was founded in August 2020 by Rohit Ramachandran & Siddarth Padmanabhan, a Mumbai based fintech focussed on curating digital first banking solutions for those in their early careers.

About Kalandri Capital Pvt. Ltd:

Kalandri Capital is a new-age digital first lender founded in 2019. We leverage technology and innovation to deliver the ultimate borrowing experience for enterprises. As part of the larger RK Group (an e-commerce company with annual sales over 1 billion USD) Kalandri Capital is backed by 30+ years of business acumen, integrity & financial expertise. We work with the current-generation of innovation-driven companies and start-ups.

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