Snapmint: Empowering Consumers with Flexible Financing Solutions

• ByStartupStory     |    June 1, 2023

Founders Abhineet Sawa & Nalin Agrawal of Snapmint, a fintech startup in India, recently shared their inspiring startup journey in an exclusive interview with Startup Story. The duo spoke about their vision, challenges, and success in building a company that enables people to purchase high-end products on easy monthly installments.

The Early Days

Nalin has a rich tech background and Abhineet had an extensive B2C Startup background.  They were hostelmates from IIT Bombay. While running an EMI ad campaign when piloting an ad tech product, they stumbled upon the need for EMIs in India. With this vision in mind, they founded Snapmint in 2017.

Starting out, Snapmint faced several challenges, including building a team and convincing investors of their business model. However, the founder’s persistence paid off, and they were able to secure funding from investors who believed in their vision.

A Vision for Financial Inclusion

The founders of Snapmint had a vision to democratize services with a belief that technology could reduce cost of servicing and reach. They knew that traditional banks and financial institutions often fail to serve the needs of mass middle income Indians.  Also founders also felt a strong need to build a financial brand that customers can love.  Where most incumbents make a lot of revenue from customer’s missed payments or hidden charges, Snapmint chose transparency and customer trust as a key business foundation

Pioneering a New Payment Model

Snapmint’s founders set out to create a new payment model that would allow consumers to purchase products and services on credit, without the need for a credit card or traditional bank loan. They developed a platform that could provide instant credit approvals and seamless payment processing, using a combination of internet penetration, machine learning, data analytics, and advanced algorithms.

Overcoming Challenges by building a Niche market

As with any startup, Snapmint faced a number of challenges along the way. One of the biggest obstacles was building trust with consumers and retailers, who were often skeptical of new payment solutions.   Many players were already offering EMIs.  To overcome this, the Snapmint team focused on <$200 online lifestyle purchases of GenZ customers.  Snapmint EMI purchases were approved in real time, with a 2 minute online process.  This was what attracted a lot of customers, followed by merchants.

Driving Financial Inclusion

Today, Snapmint is driving financial inclusion and helping to build a more equitable financial system in India. Two thirds of Snapmint customers are either new to credit or thin credit file customers.  Customers make disciplined EMI payments while buying products at no extra cost.  Over time they are able to upgrade their credit histories.  As compared with incumbents, Snapmint has significantly cut cost of acquiring and servicing customers with its technology.  Over time Snapmint app has acquired a customer base of 1.3 Cr customers, with a 4.5 rating and there are numerous user generated customer videos of existing customers promoting Snapmint’s customer friendly proposition to others.

A Message for Future Entrepreneurs

For future entrepreneurs looking to break into the fintech space, the founders of Snapmint offer some valuable advice. They stress the importance of focusing on customer needs, building trust with users, and staying laser-focused on a specific niche market. They also encourage entrepreneurs to be open to failure and to view each setback as a learning opportunity.

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