SIDBI Partners KarmaLife To Offer Micro Loans For Gig Workers
In a move aimed at empowering gig workers financially, the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has forged an innovative partnership with OnionLife Private Ltd. This collaboration brings to the fore KarmaLife, a technology platform designed to provide tailored microloan solutions to gig workers, facilitating their integration into the realm of formal institutional credit.
This initiative by SIDBI and KarmaLife is poised to revolutionize how gig workers access financial services, offering them an easy and convenient way to obtain microloans for their enterprise activities through a mobile application. The partnership underscores SIDBI’s commitment to broadening financial inclusion among emerging enterprise classes, such as gig workers, who have hitherto had limited access to traditional banking services.
The Chairman and Managing Director of SIDBI, S Ramann, expressed his enthusiasm about the collaboration, stating that it provides an excellent opportunity to better understand and support the burgeoning class of gig workers while exploring effective institutional mechanisms for assessing their credit risk.
Rohit Rathi, the co-founder and CEO of KarmaLife, echoed similar sentiments, highlighting the significance of empowering gig workers through financial resources to ensure their success in the increasingly popular gig economy. Rathi emphasized KarmaLife’s mission to devise efficient solutions that enable gig workers to manage liquidity effortlessly.
In light of the gig economy’s rapid expansion across India, the need for affordable and readily accessible financial support for non-salaried workers has become increasingly evident. Many gig workers depend on platform aggregators for their livelihoods and, thus, require innovative financial solutions tailored to their unique needs.
KarmaLife was established in 2020 by a trio of co-founders—Rohit Rathi, Naveen Budda, and Badal Malick. Operating on a B2B2C model, the company has successfully partnered with over 50 organizations, including prominent names such as Flipkart, Elasticrun, Uber, Porter, and Delhivery, to offer gig and blue-collar workers the flexibility to access their earnings ahead of the scheduled payday.
So far, KarmaLife has extended its services to approximately 2.7 lakh gig and blue-collared workers, providing them with subscription-based credit products like earned wage access (EWA) and lines of credit. The company has developed a proprietary real-time credit scoring system, known as KarmaScore, which plays a critical role in its operations. Notably, its flagship EWA product allows workers to access a portion of their earned but unpaid wages at any time before their official payday, enhancing their financial flexibility.
As of 2023, KarmaLife boasts a clientele of over 100,000 blue-collar workers benefiting from its platform’s innovative financial services.
The SIDBI, established in 1990 via an Act of the Indian Parliament, stands as the principal financial institution dedicated to the promotion, financing, and development of the micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) sector in India. Additionally, SIDBI plays a pivotal role in coordinating the activities of various institutions engaged in similar endeavors.
In a recent development, SIDBI announced securing $24.5 million from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) for its Avaana Sustainability Fund (ASF), underscoring its commitment to sustainability and climate-focused financial initiatives.
This partnership between SIDBI and KarmaLife marks a significant milestone in fostering financial inclusivity among gig workers, promising a brighter future for this emerging enterprise class through innovative and accessible financial solutions.
