Lendingkart FY24: Profit Declines 97% To INR 3.25 Cr

Fintech soonicorn Lendingkart reported a 97.2% decline in its consolidated net profit to INR 3.25 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 118.8 Cr a year ago, primarily due to sharp increase in impairment loss on financial assets, loans and advances.

It is pertinent to note that Lendingkart first achieved profitability in FY23.

While Lendingkart saw a degrowth in its bottomline, its operating revenue surged 36.6% to INR 1,090.6 Cr during the year under review from INR 798.4 Cr in the previous year.

Founded in 2014 by Harshvardhan Lunia, Lendingkart has an NBFC licence, and it disburses loans to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). It also provides personal loans of up to INR 5 Lakh under the brand name Upwards.

The startup primarily earns revenue from two sources – income from interest and its financial services offerings.

Including other income of INR 127.2 Cr, total revenue rose sharply to INR 1,217.9 Cr in the year ended March 31, 2024 as compared to INR 858 Cr in the previous fiscal.

Lendingkart earned INR 65.1 Cr in commission income from insurance during the year under review, a whopping 623% increase from INR 9 Cr a year ago.

Revenue from interest on deposits with banks more than doubled to INR 30.9 Cr in FY24 as compared to INR 15.1 Cr in the previous year.

Advertisement and marketing income stood at INR 21.4 Cr during the year ended March 2024.

Zooming Into Lendingkart’s FY24 Expenses

In line with the surge in sales, Lendinkart’s total expenses surged 58.92% to INR 1,194.3 Cr during for the year ended March 31, 2024 from INR 751.5 Cr in the previous year. 

Impairment Loss On Financial Assets, Loans And Advances: This was the biggest expense head for Lendingkart in FY24. The spending under this bucket surged 128.6% to 256.3 Cr during the year under review from INR 112.1 Cr in FY23

Employee Benefit Expense: Employee costs surged 75.6% to INR 199 Cr in during the year under review from INR 113.2 Cr in FY23.

Of these, the company spent INR 41 Cr in employee stock option scheme in FY24 compared to INR 8.4 Cr a year ago.

Commission Paid To Selling Agents: Lendingkart spent INR 125.6 Cr under this head during the year under review, a 58% jump from INR 79.4 Cr in FY24.

It was earlier reported that Fullerton Financial Holdings, an existing investor in Lendingkart and a subsidiary of Temasek, would invest an additional INR 252 Cr in the fintech startup to acquire a controlling stake.

In May this year, Lendingkart raised $10 Mn (INR 83.5 Cr) via external commercial borrowing from a fund managed by Swiss impact investor BlueOrchard.