KoinWorks Signs Deal With Ministry, Focuses on SME Lending
Jakarta. Indonesian peer-to-peer lender KoinWorks is set to partner with the Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Ministry to reach out to more small businesses and provide them with lending and mentoring on financing and investment.
KoinWorks signed an agreement on Wednesday with Fokus UMKM, a community for small and medium enterprises under the ministry, to provide training, mentoring and access to lending to around 4,900 SMEs under the organization.
KoinWorks' chief marketing officer, Jonathan Bryan, said aside from offering SMEs lower loan interest rates than those offered by banks, the fintech startup will also provide them with crucial financial education.
"We offer loans with lower interest rates and easier access to them [compared to banks]. With us, you can apply for loans using an app," Jonathan said after signing the partnership agreement with Fokus UMKM in Jakarta on Wednesday.
"Also, we will work to educate the SME owners. Not all owners, especially those who have only been running their business for one to two years, have sufficient understanding of how lending works," he said.
"Consumer loans and business loans are totally different. They are calculated differently. Small businesses have to learn how to make more profit than the interests they have to pay on the loans. We will provide training for SMEs in these matters, supervised by the ministry," Jonathan said.
Jonathan, however, said KoinWorks prefers to provide loans for businesses that have already shown signs of gaining some traction in the market.
"KoinWorks focuses on small businesses on their growth stage instead of startup stage. Our loans are targeted at businesses that are already running," Jonathan said, adding that SMEs should produce a digital portfolio to make it easier for the KoinWorks team to learn about their business.
Founded in 2015 by Benedicto Haryono and Willy Arifin, KoinWorks currently has more than 370,000 users made up of both lenders and borrowers.
Aside from peer-to-peer lending, the fintech company also offers business and educational loans. It also plans to launch eight new services in 2020, including gold saving.
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