Fintech

Navi charts course for profitability amid tough market conditions

Pratik Bhakta

February 22, 2023 | 6 Min Read

Having been denied a banking licence, Sachin Bansal-led Navi is currently coming to terms with two top-level exits as well. Despite these setbacks, the firm is focused on reining in its marketing and promotional costs while still looking to grow aggressively

Last May, Sachin Bansal-led Navi saw its best laid plans upended when the Reserve Bank of India—India’s central bank—rejected its application for a commercial banking licence. Without this licence, Navi’s ambition of providing a tech-first, mass market banking solution was effectively a non-starter.

Flipkart co-founder Bansal, however, has refused to allow this setback to bog Navi down. The firm is scaling up its loan book aggressively. Unlike in previous years, though, when its growth was driven by massive marketing and management costs, Navi is now laser focused on creating a profitable business.

While the MFI business continues to be profitable, the personal loan business turned loss-making in the year ended March 2022, owing to large expenses incurred for marketing and promotional activities.

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