Emergency Lending Tops The 2019 Chart, Says Survey

New Delhi: Being prepared for emergencies is a must. However, recent findings suggest that people continue to remain unprepared for such unforeseen circumstances. A survey by a peer-to-peer (P2P) lending and borrowing platform, LenDenClub, reveals that 63 per cent borrowers in its platform required loans for emergencies, followed by 37 per cent for fulfilling aspirations such as family functions and home renovations in 2019.

The data noted that Bengaluru had the highest credit demand, followed by Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pune, and Chennai. The platform analysed its 2019 data of more than 4,00,000 users on their platform, which facilitates P2P lending and borrowing options for investors and borrowers.

Being financially safe is a wise step to stay prepared. In such cases, keeping a portion of monthly income as an emergency fund for the immediate requirement to cover expenses that tails along during dire needs is always advised.

“Paying off huge bills sometimes is not easy to deal with and availing a loan in such a time-bound situation becomes all the more important. Also, most organisations do not have their salary cycles fixed. These and very common situations for people to avail loans and they repay them as soon as they receive their salary,” Bhavin Patel, CEO of LenDenClub, said.

Further, 41 per cent of borrowers were under the age bracket of fewer than 30 years, 27 per cent were between 31 to 35 years, 20 per cent were between 36 to 46 years, and 12 per cent were up to 25 years.

While 40 per cent of the total borrowers were earning between Rs 12,000 to Rs 20,000, 31 per cent were earning Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000, 14 per cent were earning 30,000 to Rs 40,000, and 15 per cent were earning more than Rs 40,000 per month. The average percentage of repeat borrowers is 37 per cent with loan frequency of three times, it noted.

The data also reveals that women are more conservative than their male counterparts when it comes to borrowing and spending money. While 84 per cent comprised of male borrowers, 16 per cent were female. Of which, 53 per cent were married and 47 per cent were single.