Freo eyes 25-30 pc growth in gross revenue this year; says sharply focused on profitability

New Delhi, Aug 16 (PTI) Digital banking platform Freo is eyeing 25-30 per cent growth in its gross revenue for the current fiscal, co-founder Anuj Kacker said, adding that the company remains sharply focused on profitability.

Kacker told PTI that RBI’s recent announcement on the creation of a public repository of Digital Lending Apps (DLA) linked to regulated entities is a good move that would improve confidence around the digital lending ecosystem.

He said that Freo’s business is growing across multiple verticals, and the company remains steadfast in its resolve to maintain profitability.

“This year, we are expecting a 25-30 per cent growth in gross revenue, and in the net revenue by 50-60 per cent as our share in gross revenue will increase,” he said.

Freo clocked gross revenue of Rs 350 crore for FY24. The company has been profitable since December 2023.

“We have been profitable in the June quarter of the current financial year, and for the September quarter also we expect to be profitable,” he said on the performance so far this fiscal.

Asked if the company is hoping to sustain profitability for the full year (current fiscal), Kacker said, “Yes, now we are not going back. Now the idea is as much as we can help it, we will not turn negative.”

The turnaround since the December quarter was aided by multiple levers, a large part of which was a reduction in customer acquisition cost.

“Also, we did not go overboard on our fixed cost, we had 5-6 new projects which we shut down based on what was working and what was not. We went back to our vendors and partners and negotiated better margins, but I think our biggest win was on the launch of new products, especially in the ‘pay’ vertical of our business,” he said.

Freo offers a comprehensive range of products including credit lines, cards, loans, bill payments, credit on UPI, savings accounts, deposits, insurance solutions and financial utilities – all integrated into a single platform.

Earlier this year, Freo secured a debt investment from SIDBI – marking the financial institution’s first debt investment in a fintech company.

On RBI’s recent announcement for a repository for authorised digital lending apps, he said, “I think it is a great move… which will enhance the trust factor.”

He, however, noted that although it does not stop a genuine app from getting listed in the repository and still defrauding a customer, doing so will lead to their removal.

The repository will increase the trust between consumers and the app giving more confidence to the authorities as well, since it would clearly demarcate the apps from those indulging in unscrupulous practices.

Earlier this month, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposed to create a public repository of digital lending apps in a bid to address the problems arising from mushrooming unauthorised players in the segment.

In the post-monetary policy review address, RBI had said the central bank has taken several measures for the orderly development of the digital lending ecosystem in India.

In a bid to address the problems arising from unauthorised DLAs, RBI proposes to create a public repository of DLAs deployed by its regulated entities.

The regulated entities will report and update information about their DLAs in this repository. This measure will help consumers to identify unauthorised lending apps.