'We Have Fast Become The First Line Of Credit For Young Professionals'

Fintech startup EarlySalary claims to India’s largest app-based consumer lender. The Pune-based company, founded by Akshay Mehrotra and Ashish Goyal in 2015, boasts over 8 million downloads and loans worth ₹650 crore already disbursed. In an interview with CEO India, Mehrotra, EarlySalary’s CEO, says the idea behind the startup was to deal with a simple problem facing the young — they cannot afford to go on a date at the end of the month due to a cash crunch. He speaks to us about how the company became the preferable line of credit for many young professionals.

What made you start this venture? What was the thought behind?

My co-founder Ashish and I started off with an aim to solve a very simple problem — many youngsters cannot afford to go on dates at the end of the month due to a cash crunch. As we started to explore solutions for this problem, we noticed that the problem was much bigger. The only product being offered was the credit card, which was meant for high-income and high bureau score customers and there were no short-term credit options for young Indians.

So, we created EarlySalary as a mobile app which allows salaried individuals to avail of easy financial assistance. The company offers a bouquet of products tailored to the needs of young India, including salary advances, instant loans, interest-free EMI options and a line of credit to shop. With more than 8 million downloads and loans worth 650 crore already being disbursed, EarlySalary is helping customers borrow within minutes. EarlySalary has fast become the first line of credit for young working professionals in India.

We were able to solve many problems through EarlySalary, which included: Credit to underserved young Indians with the help of alternate risk score beyond bureau scores, ability to offer real-time loans on a mobile app without human underwriting and most importantly gaining acceptance by large companies as a financial wellness offering for employees to access as credit whenever they need it.

What is unique about the business idea for your venture? Do you consider it a disruptive idea in the market you’re in?