ONDC Ventures Into Fintech Space With 6-Minute Loan Offerings

State-backed network Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) has bolstered its fintech play with the launch of credit offerings. 

In a statement, the network said that customers interfacing with the network via Easypay, Paisabazaar, Tata Digital, Invoicepe, Cliniq360, Zyapaar, Indipe, Tyreplex and Paynearby can get fully digital and paperless loans in just six minutes. 

The loans will be provided by the aforementioned nine lending services providers and will be facilitated by lenders like Aditya Birla Finance, DMI Finance and Karnataka Bank. 

Besides, the network claims that lending services provides Mobikwik, Rupeeboss and Samridh.ai, as well as lenders, including HDFC Bank, IDFC First Bank, Faircent, Pahal Finance, Fibe, Tata Capital, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Finance, FTCash and Central Bank of India are also in the pipeline to partake in the service. 

“By integrating multiple digital systems into a single process, we are simplifying the borrowing experience and expanding credit availability even for remote and underserved regions. This innovation not only reduces operational costs for both lenders and buyer applications but also enhances financial inclusion, fostering economic growth and opportunity across the country,” ONDC’s MD and CEO T Koshy said. 

To facilitate the loans in minutes service, ONDC has integrated the following public services in its process:  

•  Account Aggregator for data
•  Digilocker or Aadhaar for KYC
• eNACH or eMandate for repayment
• Aadhaar eSign for agreement signing.

Following the launch of these loans, ONDC Network plans to introduce GST invoice financing loans by September end 2024. ONDC has had plans to take more financial services live for its network participants since September last year. 

According to its website, unsecured GST Based invoice loans, purchase finance, and working capital lines are the next in line to go live. In the insurance segment, the network is planning to take health, marine, motor and life insurance online soon.

This comes over a month after ONDC’s CBO Shireesh Joshi told Inc42 that the network has mapped out the sequence of steps to launch the credit offering. “Now that we have completed the test stage, we are inviting more providers of credit and providers of interest to say the network is ready, to join us and start doing business. At the moment, we have a target base number which we aim to hit before taking the service to the public at large,” he had said. 

For the month of July, ONDC crossed 12 Mn monthly transactions on ecommerce. Around 4.4 Mn of the orders recorded in July were from the mobility domain while the remaining 7.6 Mn was obtained from non-mobility domain. It also claims to be online in over 611 cities with 111 network participants.

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