KrazyBee, the non-banking financial company (NBFC) arm of lendingtech startup KreditBee, saw its net profit more than triple to INR 200.3 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 65.1 Cr in the previous fiscal year.
On the back of a sharp rise in its interest income, KrazyBee (KB NBFC) also saw a whopping 95% jump in its operating revenue to INR 1,399.2 Cr during the year under review from INR 717 Cr in FY23.
Launched in 2018 by Madhusudan Ekambaram, Karthikeyan Krishnaswamy, and Vivek Veda, KreditBee serves credit and other personal finance requirements. As its subsidiary, KB NBFC serves as one of the lending partners of KreditBee.
KB NBFC earns a majority of its revenue from interest income, followed by fee and commission income. The NBFC earned INR 1,225.8 Cr as interest income, which surged over 156% year-on-year (YoY) in FY24.
However, its fee and commission income declined 1.1% YoY to INR 168.8 Cr in the reported fiscal due to a fall in service fees.
KB NBFC’s total revenue stood at INR 1,400.2 Cr in FY24 as against INR 717.7 Cr in the previous year.
KB NBFC said in its financials filing that it raised funds of around INR 3,450 Cr in FY24 via different routes, including secured non-convertible debentures and term loans/ working capital loans, among others.
It is pertinent to note that KB NBFC secured INR 268 Cr in debt funding from Yubi, Dzerv, Neo Group, OfBusiness, Oxyzo, and others between April and June this year. Inc42 reported that the fresh funds were likely to be used for working capital needs and to expand the business.
In fact, continuing the strong growth, the NBFC;s operating revenue almost doubled YoY to INR 509.5 Cr in the quarter ended June 2024.
Where Did It Spend?
KB NBFC’s total expenses surged 80% to INR 1,131.9 Cr in FY24 from INR 630.2 Cr in the previous year.
Impairment On Financial Instruments: The company’s expenses under this head jumped to INR 431.9 Cr during the year under review from INR 248.5 Cr in FY23.
It included financial instruments measured at amortised cost loans and at fair value financial guarantee contracts.
Employee Cost: KB NBFC spent INR 188.3 Cr towards employee benefit expenses during FY24, which grew a whopping 400% from INR 37.4 Cr the year before.
In that, INR 128.6 Cr was spent on salaries and wages, while INR 52 Cr was given as share based payments to employees.
Deficiency Recovery Expense: The lending firm spent INR 26.7 Cr under this bucket in FY24, which was nil last year.
KB NBFC is a regulated entity under the purview of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). In early 2023, the central bank slapped a penalty of INR 42.48 Lakh on the fintech startup for allegedly harassing borrowers for debt collection.
