Delhi-based RBI licensed NBFC, AMU Leasing Private Limited (ALPL) takes pride in being the first women led AI and tech driven NBFC exclusively serving the EV ecosystem.
By supporting the alternate fuel-based transportation sector, ALPL aims to propel the revenue generation for self-employed livelihoods and sustaining that improvement. During a recent interaction with Aishwarya, Nehal Gupta, Director of AMU Leasing Pvt., has expressed her opinion on the current landscape of India’s EV ecosystem and its potential to grow in the next few years.
Tell us about ALPL’s key offerings and how is ALPL work bringing monopoly to the electric vehicle market?
As a cleantech NBFC, we provide a wide range of financial products tailored to the clean energy ecosystem. Some of our current EV financing products include retail, enterprise, and tailored loans for two, three, and four-wheelers. Besides extending financial assistance, we provide our clients with proper guidance and support that helps them make informed financial decisions regarding accessing funds and purchasing EVs on loan. Through our transparent customer service, smooth loan approval along with a phygital disbursal process, and vast product offerings, we have built a diverse clientele. Today, we have clients across FMCG companies, third-party logistics, fleet aggregators, e-commerce companies, multi-party logistics, food supply companies, multi-OEM companies, courier companies, and even passenger vehicle operators ensuring our financing products and services are accessible to a broad range of customers. However, our focus on maintaining transparency and building lasting relationships has helped us to establish a solid footing in the electric vehicle market. We believe that recognizing the diverse segments within the EV market, especially in the 2W and 3W categories, prioritizing borrowers’ requirements, and supporting the country’s vision towards a green economy, positions us comfortably to bring monopoly in the EV market. However, our immediate goal is to become one of the top EV financing leaders by 2025 and record 1 million electric vehicle disbursements by 2030. To achieve this, we aim to continue enhancing our expertise in EV leasing and financing.
Mention your process for selecting companies eligible for loans and is it different for fleet operators or commercial vehicles, if yes then how?
Our process to check applicants’ eligibility for EV loans is simple but thorough. While our criteria are easy to meet, we have set different requirements for each category of borrowers to ensure all individuals and MSMEs have access to funding. For fleets and commercial vehicles, the process is quite similar. Our company extends loans to eligible entities for electric 3Ws or 4Ws against asset hypothecation, where individuals can apply for a fixed amount for a tenure ranging from 18-36 months. However, the exact tenure depends on the type of vehicle they wish to finance. AMU Leasing typically follows the standard process of computing interest on the sum lent after deducting applicable charges. All our products are close-ended credit solutions, and to ensure our borrowers can repay them timely, we offer flexible repayment tenure. This helps our customers pick a schedule that suits their financial standing the best and allows them to repay the sum without tarnishing their credit score. We believe in underwriting both the borrower and the asset.
How do you view the current landscape of India’s electric vehicle ecosystem?
I think we all can agree that the current landscape of India’s EV ecosystem is promising and has a lot of potential to grow in the next few years. For instance, recently, the Economic Survey of 2023 stated that the Indian EV market would experience a CAGR of 49% between 2022 and 2030. The survey indicates a noticeable shift towards sustainable transportation, with a projected 10 million annual EV sales by the end of this decade. As a part of this ecosystem, I believe that EV financing will continue to play a crucial role in the growth of the domestic sector by making electric vehicles accessible to a broader audience. Meaningful partnerships between NBFCs and automotive manufacturers have been key in driving the growth of the landscape. In my view, such collaborations have enabled EV financers to extend more flexible financing options, making it easier for retail customers and fleet owners to access financing. In fact, AMU Leasing has also tied up with three 2W players, three 3W players, and one 4W player to enhance its offerings. These collaborations have helped us diversify our existing EV offerings and solidify our position in the market. In addition, more innovations in EV offerings like battery financing, adoption of EVs beyond the two-wheeler or three-wheeler segments, and development of EV charging station across the country is adding momentum to the EV ecosystem. These developments have also encouraged us to innovate our product line and make notable developments in the EV ecosystem.
Mention any possible changes in the financing sector we can expect that can transform the EV sector and your contribution in making this happen in near future?
In the upcoming years, we expect more NBFCs, banking institutions, and fintech startup collaborations, which will be aimed to offer a wide range of financing options and reduce the upfront cost of purchasing EVs. In addition, we expect to see a rise in tie-ups between OEMs and financing companies to enhance their access to credit. As for us, innovation has always been at the core of our operations. One of our recent endeavours to transform the EV sector has been our strides in the segment of battery financing. This has revolutionized our approach to EV financing and has enabled us to extend support to the much more niche second-life market of electric vehicles. Besides these, we aim to improve our existing EV financing products and customer services to support more EV purchases and boost their adoption rate in the country.
Any possible collaborations or expansion plans, AMU Leasing is planning to undertake in the near future?
In 2023, we established around eight new partnerships, which enabled us to boost our market reach and improve our EV financing services significantly. Through these new partnerships, we have successfully diversified our product offerings and increased our databases of different asset ranges in the ecosystem. Keeping the spirit of collaborations alive, we are exploring potential partnerships in the segments of drones and buses to enhance our scope of operations. On the other hand, we have already extended our reach to 10 states, with new geographical expansions in Odisha, Gujarat, and Punjab. We also enhanced our prominence in Uttar Pradesh, including Gorakhpur, Akbarpur, Banaras, Lucknow, Azamgarh, and Kanpur. In the new year, we plan to leverage more expansion opportunities and grow our presence in the market to help more individuals switch to EVs.