Ambitious India Fuels Andromeda Loans' 63% Hike In Loan Disbursals for FY22-23

Buoyed by the Indian public's ambitious lifestyle, one of India's leading loan distributors, Andromeda Loans, has reported an impressive 63% hike in its loan disbursements for FY22-23. The loan disbursement for FY22-23 has been Rs 60,000 Crore.

Expressing satisfaction at the annual performance, Raoul Kapoor, Co-CEO of Andromeda Sales & Distribution, said at press conference in Delhi, that Andromeda is expecting a 15% in loan disbursals to Rs 70,000 crores in FY24. His confidence is substantiated by the skyward growth in Andromeda's loan disbursement for FY22 (Rs 36,842 crore) and FY19 (Rs 15,333 crore).

The company has witnessed similar upward trends for disbursements under business loan (101%) and personal loan (59%). Andromeda's personal loan disbursal, which was Rs 4119 crore in the FY21-22, rose to more than 59% to become Rs 6,551 crore in FY 22-23. The 3-decades old loan distribution firm also caters to loans against property.

Kapoor also pointed out that it was despite six consecutive rate hikes by RBI recently that the consumption was driving the demand in all the loan segments. However, he added, "Higher interest rates are here to stay."

Observing three major trends across the three geographical vertical of India, Kapoor informed that the average ticket size of loans is going up in metro cities. On the other hand, he said that the average ticket size of loans was also increasing in Tier-I and Tier-II cities, driven by the consumers wanted to upgrade their lifestyles.

Speaking at the press conference, Kapoor said, "Exponential rise in the home loan demand lasted for almost two years when Covid-19 hit the world. The pandemic went on for more than the expected duration, creating a bump in the growth of this sector. However, the demand in the home loan segment is now back to the previous normal. There will be some moderation in the growth of this demand, going further."

Talking about the affordable housing segment, he said the sector was facing two main challenges – limited supply of inventories and the rising cost of construction. As a result, he added, it was becoming increasingly difficult to hold on to the margins within the segment. About the personal loan segment, Kapoor said that the average ticket size in the metro cities was up from Rs 8-10 lakh during the pre-Covid period to Rs 12-14 lakh now. He explained that the personal loan is comparatively cheaper owing to the cut-throat competition in this segment.

(Author is an ex-Banker with 20+ years of experience in handling retail asset business.)