MobiKwik shares jump 4% as RBI approves NBFC licence; co targets Rs 5,000 crore loans

Shares of One MobiKwik Systems rose 4% on Friday, November 6, after the fintech company announced that its wholly owned subsidiary had received final approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a non-banking financial company (NBFC), paving the way for the company to enter direct lending.

MobiKwik Financial Services Private Limited (MFSPL), the company's subsidiary, received its Certificate of Registration from the central bank following an in-principle approval granted in April 2026.

The licence will allow MobiKwik to originate loans directly through its NBFC, expanding its existing lending business, which currently operates through partnerships with banks and other financial institutions.


The company plans to disburse loans worth Rs 5,000 crore over the next three to four years, targeting consumers and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) across India.

MFSPL intends to offer both secured and unsecured credit products and expects to begin operations within the next three to six months.

Initially, the company plans to adopt an asset-light co-lending model in partnership with banks and other NBFCs, allowing it to expand its lending operations while sharing credit exposure with established financial institutions.

The company said the licence would provide greater flexibility in developing lending products, accelerate product launches and create opportunities to improve lending profitability.

MobiKwik plans to use its existing technology infrastructure, customer data, analytics capabilities, credit assessment models and collections systems to support its lending operations.

The approval comes as MobiKwik looks to expand its financial services business beyond digital payments. The company has an established network of 196 million users and five million merchants, providing a large potential customer base for lending products.

Upasana Taku, co-founder, executive director and chief financial officer of MobiKwik, said the approval marked an important step in the company's expansion into financial services. "Our strong payment network of 196 million users and 5 million merchants will benefit immensely from our ability to provide loans through our NBFC," Taku said.

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She added that MobiKwik had already built the technology infrastructure, lender relationships and risk-management capabilities required to expand its credit business.

The NBFC licence will enable the company to participate more actively in loan origination and other parts of the lending business, potentially improving its share of earnings from credit products. However, direct lending also brings greater responsibility for underwriting, loan monitoring, collections and managing credit losses.

Taku said the company's focus would remain on responsible lending, prudent underwriting and building a sustainable lending business.

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