Bengaluru, Aug 24 (IANS): Flipkart Wholesale, the digital B2B marketplace of India's homegrown Flipkart Group, has announced the launch of credit programs which aim to help kiranas manage their working capital requirements and grow their business.

Flipkart Wholesale's credit offerings, including 'Easy Credit' in partnership with IDFC FIRST Bank, are in line with a series of initiatives undertaken to solve local pain points of kiranas in India and boost prosperity for them by making their business easier using technology.

Through these new offerings, kiranas can avail credit in just two minutes at zero cost, through end-to-end digital onboarding in partnership with IDFC FIRST Bank and other fintech institutions. The credit line will range from Rs 5,000 to Rs 2 lakh with an interest-free period of upto 14 days. Kiranas can also avail the benefits of flexible repayment options through cash and online transfers as well as instant refunds in case of order cancellation while seamlessly keeping a tab on their credit balance and bills.

Adarsh Menon, Senior Vice President and Head - Flipkart Wholesale, said, "Our key goal at Flipkart Wholesale is to make business easier for kiranas & retailers and boost their growth journey. We believe our new credit plan is tailored to solve local challenges that kiranas in India face and will help them manage their cash flow and improve their purchase experience on our platform, thereby ensuring that the benefits of digitisation trickle to the entire B2B retail ecosystem."

Amit Kumar, Head-Retail Liabilities & Branch Banking - IDFC FIRST Bank, said, "India's kirana stores account for over two-thirds of the country's retail landscape. This traditional trade is now evolving in terms of retail formats and business models. As a bank with a digital-first approach and focus on serving the retail ecosystem, we are keen to contribute to the growth of this segment. The partnership with Flipkart gives us an opportunity to enable kiranas to access formal credit and scale up business."

Flipkart Wholesale serves over 1.5 million members across the country, which include kiranas/retailers, HoReCa (hotels, restaurants and cafeterias) and O&I (offices and institutions).

Flipkart Wholesale customers have access to an array of value propositions, including a wide range of Flipkart-assured quality products, simple and convenient order returns and speedy product delivery directly to their shops with an easy order tracking facility and better margins on every product.