Bonjour, new guests from small-town India
Puneet Dhawan of Accor is brimming with ideas on ways to revive the hospitality sector
Financial Inclusion Network and Operations (FINO), a company focussed on the business correspondent (BC) model for financial inclusion in the country, plans to more than double its BC points in the next one year. The company is currently working with over 20 banks, three insurance companies, 10 State Governments and some Union ministries, and has over 26 million customers.
“We currently have 11,000 BC points, which will grow to 30,000 in a year. FINO currently has 80 offices, which will grow to 200 in a year. The employee strength will also go up to meet the demand of business,” Mr Rishi Gupta, Chief Financial Officer, FINO, told Business Line. The expansion will be in line with the growing demand in the country for these services, thanks to the great push from the Reserve Bank of India for financial inclusion and banks accelerating their pace to reach the un-banked.
FINO is currently finalising its business plan for the next two years, and plans to “approach investors once the internal planning is complete”, he said, without divulging financial details. Industry estimates peg the market size that can be addressed through technology-enabled financial inclusion programme at over 500 million un-banked or under-banked customers. With such a big market, the company is in preliminary talks with private equity players for funds.
According to Mr Gupta, the company has seen over 100 per cent growth every year since inception five years ago. “The impetus to electronic benefit transfer in government disbursement for NREGA and SSP will further push the business,” he explained. Going forward, the focus will be more customer-centric, and efforts are on to come out with new products, which, he expected, would see an “increased usage of the system and increase in transaction flow”.
FINO is currently working on two products — remittance functionality using a micro-deposit machine, and mobile wallet using customers' mobile phones leading to remittance transactions. Mr Gupta said the pilot projects of both these products would be launched soon.
Puneet Dhawan of Accor is brimming with ideas on ways to revive the hospitality sector
Citroen’s first vehicle sports a novel design and European interiors. It is also meant to be as comfortable as ...
The pandemic is only the tip of the iceberg that the country’s cash-poor airlines — both regional and national ...
The government is yet to specify the framework of its recently announced old vehicle scrappage policy
Here is a checklist that equips you to discern the market nuances
Sensex, Nifty 50 have witnessed sharp decline
The fund has consistently outperformed S&P BSE 100 TRI over one, three and five years
Returns are superior to immediate annuity plans, but SCSS can secure better rates for new investors sooner if ...
With the public looking beyond mainstream media for reports from the ground, independent digital platforms are ...
The country hasn’t had a quiet moment since the military seized power on February 1
The Tatmadaw sees itself as an embodiment of the nationalist soul of Myanmar. But their brand of nationalism ...
While Supreme Court has cleared the way for women seeking longer tenures and senior roles in the Indian Army, ...
Its name is the starting point of a brand’s journey and can make a big difference in the success sweepstakes
Sober spirits are the in thing
A peek into where ad spends went last year and where they are headed tomorrow
Can Swiggy Instamart disrupt the ecommerce groceries space, currently ruled by the Amazons and Big Baskets? ...
Three years after its inception, compliance with GST procedures remains a headache for exporters, job workers ...
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives of companies are altering the prospects for wooden toys of ...
Aequs Aerospace to create space for large-scale manufacture of toys at Koppal
And it has every reason to smile. Covid-19 has triggered a consumer shift towards branded products as ...
Please Email the Editor