Don’t get trapped in the Festive discounts: Aditya Kumar, Qbera By Elets News Network - 17 October 2019

Mr Aditya Kumar

You can only get trapped by festive discounts and offers if you fall for them. Avoid overspending on discounted products that you don’t need, especially if you’re using your credit card to make your purchases. Also, beware of no-cost/zero-cost EMI schemes that have hidden interest charges, says Aditya Kumar, Co-Founder & CEO, Qbera, in conversation with Anupama Suresh Mehra of Elets News Network (ENN).

Q. Give us an overview of your products and services?

Qbera offers super-smart, super-fast and hassle-free personal loans to salaried individuals with a minimum income of Rs. 20,000 per month. Qbera is active in 180+ cities across India covering 16,000+ zip codes and currently offers instant credit to employees off over 7,00,000 companies in India. The loan process is paperless – not requiring physical paperwork, and presence-less – not requiring the customer’s physical presence.

Q. How one should manage funds during the festive season?

The festive season brings along tons of discounts and offers on a wide array of electronic gadgets, clothing, holiday packages, and home decor items among others. It isn’t unusual to feel tempted to make purchases, especially through credit. As a matter of fact, thanks to the easy availability of credit, the number of consumers making purchases during the festive season has seen a significant upswing.

As much as it is important to make your family and friends feel special, it is essential to exercise financial prudence, especially in the wake of tempting discounts and offers. Using your credit card to make purchases is a perfectly welcome move, but make sure you don’t overspend on your card on items you don’t really need. Instead, invest your money wisely on debt–saving instruments and refrain from purchasing depreciating assets unless completely necessary.

Also, beware of the power of compounding on your credit card – convert your purchases into EMIs to reduce the financial burden. If you aren’t taking advantage of the interest-free period on your credit card (banks allow for interest-free periods on credit cards wherein consumers can avoid paying interest if they clear their entire outstanding amount within the interest-free period).

Q. How challenging is it to serve the Indian public when it comes to digital lending?

Fintech lenders have made digital lending impressively seamless by leveraging advanced and powerful technological resources like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Data Analytics. The loan process which earlier involved cumbersome paperwork has been transformed into a paperless and presence-less process thanks to stellar breakthroughs made by some lenders in the market.

The perceived “challenge” surrounding digital lending has been reduced to bits, and getting an instant loan today is as easy as ordering a pizza or hailing a cab. There are, however, issues that need to fine-tune, especially in the E-KYC domain. Fintechs are still awaiting clarity using the Aadhaar to validate customer credentials.

Q. How one should not get trapped in the festive discounts?

You can only get trapped by festive discounts and offers if you fall for them. Avoid overspending on discounted products that you don’t need, especially if you’re using your credit card to make your purchases. Also, beware of no-cost/zero-cost EMI schemes that have hidden interest charges.

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