Mastercard and Bizom recently announced a collaboration to extend a holistic digital supply chain financing solution to over 75 lakh micro retailers and 2 lakh distributors of the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry.
The card network in a media statement said, small retailers and distributors in India face several challenges including supply chain disruptions, inventory management, payment issues, limited technical skills and lack of access to capital, that impacts their business operations and growth prospects.
According to recent reports, out of over 64 million MSMEs in India, only 14 per cent have access to formal credit. The partnership between Mastercard and Bizom will aim to address this gap and help retailers to grow their business, Mastercard added in the statement.
Bizom will work with its vast network of over 75 lakh retailers and 2 lakh distributors operating in the CPG industry to automate route-to-market operations, with its best-in-class SaaS offerings. Mastercard will enable the adoption of digital payments for micro retailers and connect them to lending partners for easy access to credit.
Vikas Varma, Chief Operating Officer, South Asia, Mastercard, said, “Rapid evolution of the retail sector has necessitated digital adoption by small businesses to derive benefits like operational efficiency and business growth. With this collaboration between Mastercard and Bizom, micro retailers and distributors will embark on a journey of digitization that helps them get online, get paid and get access to capital.”
He added, “No one organization can solve for the existing credit gap alone. So, it is imperative that we build ecosystem partnerships to bridge this gap. Through this partnership, Mastercard plans to bring together various stakeholders in the industry ecosystem from both the demand and supply side on a common platform to support small businesses.”
Lalit Bhise, CEO of Bizom, said, “We are excited to pave the way for the millions of MSME businesses like retailers, distributors, wholesalers and small manufacturers in Bizom’s network to gain access to formal digital financial products. Through this partnership with Mastercard, Bizom’s digital trade credit service will extend instant financial support to these small entrepreneurs, helping them grow faster.”
