Faircent FAQs | Lenders/Borrower Frequently Asked Questions | P2P Lending
BORROWER FAQS
Q: Why borrow through Faircent?
A: Faircent offers the borrowers a lower interest rate and less hassle than traditional financing options. It offers attractive fixed rates, an easy online application, friendly service and no hidden fees.
Q: How do I get started?
A: Simply click on the Sign Up Now icon and register through the simple step by step process as instructed. Once you have filled the basic information required and uploaded the documents required, Faircent risk assessment team will identity-verify, credit-check and risk-assess your profile. If qualified, your registration as a Borrower will be approved and you can apply for loan on the Faircent platform.
Q: Why do you require documents?
The documents are required to identity-verify, credit-check and risk-assess a borrower before registration. Apart from the CIBIL score, we use various other parameters like ability, stability, past performance and intention of the borrowers, which are evaluated basis these documents. The documents provided like salary slips, bank statements, ITR’s, balance sheets etc. help in taking a collective and transparent decision ensuring a fair field for the borrower.
Q: Why should I pay filing fee?
The filing fee is towards the considerable time, effort and resources spent by our credit evaluation mechanism to carefully assesses each borrower profile. The filing fee is non-refundable and payable at the time of disbursement only by the borrower funded through the Faircent portal.
Q: How much can I borrow?
A: At Faircent, loan disbursal is dependent on loan requirement. For personal requirements, loan amount can vary from Rs. 10,000/- to Rs. 5,00,000/-. For business purpose, a borrower can apply for a loan upto Rs. 10,00,000/-.
Q: Will I be funded by an individual lender or by multiple lenders?
A: As per Faircent policy, no single lender can fund the entire loan requirement of a borrower. Hence, your loan will be funded by multiple lenders.
Q: Can I pre-pay my EMI? Can I repay my loan early if I like? Are there any charges?
A: Pre-closure of loan can be done after three months from the disbursal of the loan without any additional charges. Prior to three months, to protect lender interest, pre-closure can be done after paying balance interest due to lenders for a period of three months from the date of disbursal. This is payable directly to Lenders. Faircent charges a one-time non-refundable pre-payment fees of Rs. 500/-.
Q: What interest rates can I expect to pay?
A: Interest rates are suggested to each borrower by an automated credit appraisal system that uses the personal and financial information provided by borrowers across more than 120 criteria using more than 400 data points to risk-asses the borrowers and understand the strength of their credit profile. The interest rate thus assigned ranges from 12% to 28%. However, Unrated Borrowers can be registered at higher interest rate.
Q: On what parameters does Faircent verify my profile and check my credit-worthiness?
A: We use a highly-developed, technology-driven process of verification across more than 120 criteria using more than 400 data points basis the personal and financial information and documents provided by the borrower. Each borrower is identity-checked, credit-checked and risk-assessed by our experienced team. The intention, stability and ability of borrowers is evaluated and understood.
Q: Does Faircent.com undertake physical verification?
A: Yes, Physical verification at both residential and official address is undertaken after prior appointment. This is undertaken to verify the identity of the Borrower.
Q: Does Faircent require references?
A: Yes, as part of the verification process, we require 4 references from your professional or personal contacts who should be able to verify your identity, intention, ability and stability to take and repay a loan.
Q: How much time does it generally take before a loan is listed?
A. Once a borrower Signs Up, provides basic information, pays the non-refundable filing fee and uploads the required documents, the risk assessment team takes 48-72 (office) hours to evaluate and verify the borrower; basis which the credit appraisal mechanism sets the parameters for the loan –loan amount, rate of interest and loan tenure. Once the borrower accepts the same, the profile is made live on the portal. Thus, your loan requirement will be available on the website for lenders to fund between 48-72 hours from your first log-in on the website.
Q: How much time does it take to find a lender? How long can my loan request be available for lenders to fund?
A: All loans are listed on the platform for 15 days which may, under special circumstances, be extended to a maximum of 30 days. This is known as listing period. However, the funding of the loan cannot be predicted or controlled as it is dependent upon attracting sufficient lenders. Credit-worthy borrowers can get funded within minutes and some borrowers assigned high rate of interest can take a few days. You can monitor lenders interest anytime by logging into your account.
Q: How long is the disbursal process?
A: The disbursal process starts only after the borrower has paid the processing fees, signed the loan agreement and provided the PDCs, NACH Mandate and any other documents required. This process is driven by borrower interest. By using technology-driven facilities available only on Faircent you can reduce this time to less than 24 hours. Post this process funds are transferred from lender’s escrow account to the borrower’s bank account within 12-24 hours. Thus, the entire disbursal process takes 24-48 hours. It is transparent and driven by borrower and lender interest with Faircent acting only as a facilitator.
Q: Why was my application declined?
A: Faircent holds the right to decline a listing in certain cases such as:
- The Borrower is unable to provide complete documentation or the same cannot be authenticated.
- These documents are required to evaluate the borrower’s credit-worthiness and intention/stability and ability to take and repay loan. Any deficiency on these parameters or in terms of past loan-performance of the borrower will lead to cancellation of listing of the borrower.
- Physical verification report is negative. It is established that the Borrower does not reside or work at the address submitted by the borrower.
- If at any stage of loan application, Faircent finds that misleading information was deliberately provided by the borrower with intentions to cheat and hurt the Faircent system, its Lenders, founders, stake holders, partners or employees or to infringe or steal the intellectual property of Faircent.
Q: What happens in case of delayed or non-payment of EMI?
A: Borrowers are morally and legally obliged to pay all dues in a timely manner. In case the EMI is not paid on the scheduled time, a penal charges is payable as per Faircent policy for each instance of delayed repayment. These charges are paid to lenders. Faircent will also charge a non-refundable overdue charges per delayed payment which will be adjusted against repayment before adjustment of the delayed EMI amount. So, Faircent encourages all borrowers to make timely payments to avoid penalty charges.
In the worst-case scenario, if Faircent has to issue a legal notice to a defaulting borrower on behalf of the lenders then a non-refundable charge of Rs. 500/- per legal notice will be payable by the borrower to Faircent.
Q: I have defaulted on loan payments before or Banks/Financial Institutions have rejected my loan application. Can I borrow on Faircent?
A: Faircent will not approve of a listing if it does not meet with our credit and verification standards. However, we encourage applicants to work on improving their credit history by repaying their debt in a timely manner and then try again after six months.
Q: How are repayments calculated?
A: Repayments are equated monthly installments calculated using the reducing balance method. Your installment per month will remain the same throughout the tenure of your loan. The first installment may be different depending on the date of disbursal.
Q: Will Faircent provide me with my credit score?
A: Faircent does not provide you with your credit score.
Q: What information can be viewed about me?
A: Once your listing has been approved by Faircent, your profile can be viewed by all registered Lenders. This includes your full name, profession, purpose of loan, email ID and financial information as this information helps you to get a loan faster. However, this information will not be visible to general visitors to the website. For more information, please view our Privacy Policy.
Q: Will my address and phone number be available online on the website?
We do not show anyone’s address or phone number to prevent harassment. For more information, please view our Privacy Policy.
Q: Can I change the loan amount I want to borrow after applying?
A: No, to avoid confusions and maintain lender interest, we do not make changes to a listing after it has been made live on the website. To increase the loan amount, you can create a fresh loan request for the difference.
Q: Can my loan request be terminated or reviewed at any stage?
A: Yes, if at any stage the information furnished by you or the verification(s) initiated by us are found to be incomplete, fraudulent or unverifiable then funding request is terminated and consequently, the lend button on the profile would be de-activated. No fee paid will be refunded.
Q: How do I cancel my loan application?
A: Please write to [email protected] requesting cancellation of your registration as Borrower. Loan cancellation can only happen prior to disbursal of funds.
Q: How do I change my bank details or set up a new direct debit?
A: Please write to [email protected] stating both your old and new bank details. Swapping charges of Rs. 500/- per swap will be applicable and payable to Faircent.
Q: Can I be both, a Lender and a Borrower?
A: No. You can either be a Lender or a Borrower at a given time.
Q) What is e-mandate? How can I verify my e-mandate?
A: In simple words, e-mandate facility allows borrowers to pay their monthly EMIs and repayments online via Electronic Money Transfer and Auto-Debit facilities. Faircent will email you the e-mandate link. Click on the link and verify using either your debit card or net banking. The whole process takes not more than a few minutes. Once the mandate is aproved, all future EMIs will be directly debited from your bank account and collected by Faicent in its collection account and then disbursed directly to each Lenders escrow acccount.
Q: How is e-mandate beneficial to me?
A: This facility has been introduced as it provides the following benefits to borrowers:
- Quick and secure
- Convenient and less time consuming: Whole process takes just a few minutes
- Contactless
- Stress free. You do not have to worry about missing your EMI date.
Q: How to register for e-mandate?
A: E-mandate can be registered using 2 methods: Netbanking and debit cards.
To register for e-mandate through netbanking following steps should be followed:
- Faircent will send you a link through SMS.
- You need to click on this link to initiate e-mandate registration. Link in the SMS is for one-time use only.
- Make sure you have your Nebanking ID and Password with you.
- On clicking the link in the SMS, you will be redirected to a page. Please allow e-mandate only on your account, in which your loan amount will be transferred.
- On this screen, select Netbanking, then click on the checkbox to select it and click on “Next” button.
- Check the given details and press the “Confirm” button.
- Review the details. Select the Accept checkbox and click “Approve Mandate” button.
- Now, enter the Netbanking User ID and Password to login.
- You will now get an OTP on your mobile. Please enter it and click “Submit”.
- On successful completion of e-mandate process you will see a “Success” message.
To register for e-mandate through debit card following steps should be followed:
- Faircent will send you a link through SMS.
- You need to click on this link to initiate e-mandate registration. Link in the SMS is for one-time use only.
- Make sure you have your Debit Card and PIN with you.
- On clicking the link in the SMS, you will be redirected to a page. Please allow e-mandate only on your account, in which your loan amount will be transferred.
- On this screen, select Debit Card, then click on the checkbox to select it and click on “Next” button.
- Check the given details and press the “Confirm” button.
- Review the details and enter the Debit Card details (Debit Card number, PIN, and Expiry Date).
- Select the checkbox and click “Submit” button.
- You will now get an OTP on your mobile. Please enter it and click “Verify”.
- On successful completion of e-mandate process you will see a “Success” message.
Q: How to amend a few details of the registered e-mandate?
A: To amend the details of the registered e-mandate follow the below steps:
- Visit https://www.faircent.in
- Click About Us -> Contact
- Click “Request Mandate/NACH Change” on the bottom - right corner of the screen
- Fill out the form by entering the following details
- Full Name
- Loan ID
- Email Address
- PAN Number
- Reason
- Select Action as “Amend”
- Click “Submit”
We will review your raised request and contact you for further details.
Q: How to permanently cancel the e-mandate?
A: To permanently cancel the e-mandate follow the below steps:
- Visit https://www.faircent.in
- Click About Us -> Contact
- Click “Request Mandate/NACH Change” on the bottom - right corner of the screen
- Fill out the form by entering the following details
- Full Name
- Loan ID
- Email Address
- PAN Number
- Reason
- Select Action as “Cancel”
- Click “Submit”
We will review your raised request and contact you for further details.
Q: How to suspend the e-mandate?
A: To suspend the registered e-mandate follow the below steps:
- Visit https://www.faircent.in
- Click About Us -> Contact
- Click “Request Mandate/NACH Change” on the bottom - right corner of the screen
- Fill out the form by entering the following details
- Full Name
- Loan ID
- Email Address
- PAN Number
- Reason
- Select Action as “Suspend”
- Click “Submit”
We will review your raised request and contact you for further details.
Q: How to revoke the e-mandate?
A: To revoke the registered e-mandate follow the below steps:
- Visit https://www.faircent.in
- Click About Us -> Contact
- Click “Request Mandate/NACH Change” on the bottom - right corner of the screen
- Fill out the form by entering the following details
- Full Name
- Loan ID
- Email Address
- PAN Number
- Reason
- Select Action as “Revoke”
- Click “Submit”
We will review your raised request and contact you for further details.
LENDER FAQS
Q: What is the Faircent Monthly Lending Plan?
A: The Faircent Monthly Lending Plan has been introduced as the best ever lending plan featuring the true power of P2P Lending! Utilising this plan, you can fund loans to your choice of the most premium of selected borrowers or categories of borrowers and make unparalleled returns of up to 12-14% per annum. The returns are provided to you as monthly repayments which include both principal and interest, based on collections from your chosen borrowers or categories. Hence this plan allows you to create a true alternate income stream. You are also eligible to earn an upside as well, if loans perform better than expectations. You can even choose to re-lend your repayments to make even better returns.
Q: What are the key noteworthy aspects of the Faircent Monthly Lending Plan?
A: Some key aspects of the Faircent Monthly Lending Plan you should note are outlined as below:
- For repayment details, you should refer to the schedule provided with each lending in the Overview section.
- Your share of the borrower EMIs will be collected and paid to you in 3rd week of the month. If your funds are disbursed to a borrower on or before 14th of the month, then you will start receiving the repayment in the next month and if they are disbursed on or after 15th of the month, then the repayment will start from the next to next month.
- Your Principal outstanding (funding amount) reduces with every repayment as each repayment has a principal component. Further, you should note that you earn interest only on such Principal Outstanding.
- In event of Foreclosure of a loan by a borrower funded by you, the principal and interest till date of foreclosure will be returned to you and your principal outstanding will reduce by the principal returned, with no further interest being payable to you on such amount.
- In event of Settlement of a loan by a borrower funded by you, the principal and interest received till date of settlement will be returned to you and your principal outstanding will reduce by the principal returned and you may need to recognise the principal loss (if any).
- Faircent Fee will be deducted on collection of EMI from borrowers and will be a fixed fee of 0.75% per month of principal.
Q: What is the Lender processing fee payable in Faircent Monthly Lending Plan?
A: Faircent Fees are deducted on collection of EMI from borrowers and will be a fixed fee of 0.75% per month of the principal.
Q: Who can lend on Faircent?
A: Any individual, body of individuals, HUF, firm, society or any artificial body, whether incorporated or not, with a valid bank account in India and PAN card can lend on Faircent. RBI listed finance companies or Companies formed under the Indian Companies Act are also eligible to apply as Lenders.
Q: How am I helping others achieve financial success? How will this benefit me?
A: Faircent provides a unique opportunity to help borrowers get loans at a better rate of interest and in the process help Lenders earn a higher interest rate than what they would if they kept their money idle. The process is mutually beneficial and is a win-win situation for both parties. However, please read the Terms and Condition to understand the risk involved.
Q: How do I become an lender on Faircent?
A: The process is simple. Please click on Sign Up and fill in some basic details about yourself. Our support team will verify your details and get in touch with you within 12-24 hrs. Once your registration is verified and approved, you can log on to your Faircent account and start lending.
Q: Why does Faircent need to verify my details?
A: Faircent conducts a verification process of the data and documents provided by Lenders. In addition, we appraise each request to ensure that concerned Lender can afford to give out loans within the boundaries of statutory laws of India. We also make sure that Lenders do not use our platform to fund any prohibited actions or purposes.
Q: What kind of returns can I expect?
A: Returns depend on the credentials of borrowers and the ongoing demand for lenders on the Faircent platform. We have an automated system, which assigns a rate of interest to each borrower. Returns depend on the choice of borrowers, plan, default and the duration of the funding.
Q: What is the maximum amount I can fund for one borrower?
A: An individual lender can fund up to 10%, HNIs (High Net worth Individual’s) up to 50% and institutional lenders upto 100% of the total loan amount requested by an individual borrower. This policy is to hedge the risk of the lenders by spreading their lending across borrowers.
Q: How safe is my money?
A: All borrowers listed on the Faircent platform are curated through various data points. Infact, Faircent has a strict borrower selection criterion. Although, this is unsecured lending, lenders can seek legal help and Faircent also has a soft recovery and collections process to ensure the safety of the monies lent through the platform. However, you must understand that this does not ensure guaranteed returns or zero defaults. Your money is not insured and is not risk-free. Please read and understand Terms and Conditions before lending. Contact Us for any clarifications.
Q: How are repayments calculated?
A: Repayments are based on EMIs paid by the borrowers funded by you, distributed to you on a pro-rata basis. The repayments may be different in value as they depend on the date of disbursal of the loan to your borrower and their EMI repayment dates.
Q: Do I have to put money upfront into my Faircent account?
No. To ensure secure, fast and smooth transfer of funds with every transaction on the platform, Faircent has opened a Lenders Escrow account under the trusteeship of ICICI Trusteeship Services Ltd. You can lend through the Payment Gateway when you lending through the Faircent website or app.
- Click on “Lend Now” from your Faircent Dashboard
- Select the plan option depending on your return expectation and tenure.
- Enter the Amount to Lend
- Select your borrowers or borrower categories and accept the loan agreeements.
- Select the Payment Method and Make the Payment from your bank account.
You may also transfer the amount you wish to lend through Faircent into the Escrow account and choose to use the balance available in Escrow Account while lending.
Q: How can I fund or recharge my escrow account?
A: You can fund or recharge the Lender Escrow account using the payment methods:
- NEFT/RTGS
- Netbanking/Debit card
- UPI
- PayTM
- Cheque
To know more click here
Q: I used UPI payment method to recharge my Lender Escrow account. Why is the transaction not reflecting?
A: To avoid delay in the recharge reflecting in your escrow account when using the UPI payment method make sure to scan the UPI QR code properly using an app on mobile that supports UPI. If you do not do a fresh QR code scan, then transaction may get delayed and will not reflect immediately in the Escrow passbook
Q: I prefer to recharge my Lender Escrow account directly from my bank account. What precautions should I take?
A: Please keep the following in mind to ensure smooth transactions when recharging from your bank account:
- IMPS recharge is reflected with substantial amount of delay and hence its is best to use only RTGS/NEFT facility.
- Make sure you have entered the correct account number, IFSC code and amount as provided by Faircent team. Do cross check to make sure.
- When transferring funds from ICICI bank, please ensure that you choose the option “Transfer to the same bank”
- When transferring funds from any bank other than ICICI bank, please ensure that you choose the option “Transfer to other bank”
Q: Which payment mode should I use when recharging my escrow account through PayTM?
A: While recharging through the PayTM option, wallet is selected as a default mode. The same can be changed to debit card, net banking or UPI, as convenient. Net banking has the lowest fees applicable and hence could be preferred over other modes.
Q: Do I need to inform Faircent after recharging my Lender’s escrow account?
A: While it is not mandatory to inform (except in case of cheque deposits), in order to ensure smooth recharge please do share screenshot, especially for NEFT transactions, with your portfolio manager. If screenshot is not available then send an email with details such as mode of payment, Lender ID, Lending ID, Transaction ID.
Q: How can I recharge my escrow account through cheque deposits and inform Faircent?
A: Cheques for the desired amount can be deposited directly in to Faircent’s bank account. Bank account name and number can be provided by your point of contact or portfolio manager. It is mandatory to share cheque details and deposit date and amount with your portfolio manager so that your escrow account can be updated once the cheque clears.
Q: When does the money go out of my virtual account linked to the Lenders Escrow account?
A: Once a loan transaction is closed with the borrower, he has signed the loan agreement and provided the PDCs the lender is officially informed by Faircent and the loan amount is transferred from the lenders virtual account to the borrower’s bank account immediately.
Q: What are the risks? How is the risk managed?
As with any lending, there are some risks, the biggest being that a borrower doesn’t repay. At Faircent we try to keep this risk to a minimum by ensuring that every borrower registered with us is identity-checked, credit-checked and risk-assessed by our experienced team. The loan is disbursed only after the borrower signs the legally-bound loan agreement. In case of default we use legally-compliant collections agencies to follow-up and collect missed payments on your behalf. Though we do our best to manage the risk at every step, defaults may happen. We encourage you to spread your funding across a number of borrowers to reduce risk.
Q: How is Liquidity provided by Faircent??
- Liquidity can be provided from returns generated as and when borrowers pay back their loans. The Lender Escrow Account is a pool of funds through which P2P loans are disbursed to Borrowers. The interest paid by the borrowers helps generate returns for the lenders. The loans have a fixed tenure, and repayment from these loans is spread over the tenure of the loan. Such loan repayments generate the funds available for providing repayments to lenders. Loan Defaults and delayed repayments from borrowers affect the amount of funds available for providing liquidity.
Faircent offers Liquidity only on a best-effort basis. Faircent shall not be liable or responsible for any delay in or non-availability of Liquidity.
Q: What happens in case of delayed or non-payment by Borrowers?
A: In case the EMI is not paid on the due date by Borrower(s), additional penal charges applicable as per Faircent Policy will be applied to the due amount for the duration of delay which Borrowers will be liable to pay. Also, as an NBFC-P2P, Faircent.com reports any defaults by Borrowers to the credit bureau.
In the worst case scenario, Faircent will facilitate the collection through our in-house collection mechanism and also send a legal notice on behalf of the lender to the borrower.
Expenses incurred for sending legal notices, by recovery agency and towards other legal proceedings are borne by the lender.
Q: Will I know my Borrowers?
A: Once a Borrower listing has been approved by Faircent, their entire profile can be viewed by all registered Lenders including their financial information and KYC details. However, we do not reveal the Borrower’s address and phone no. For further information, please view Faircent Policy and Terms and Conditions.
- Liquidity can be provided from returns generated as and when borrowers pay back their loans. The Lender Escrow Account is a pool of funds through which P2P loans are disbursed to Borrowers. The interest paid by the borrowers helps generate returns for the lenders. The loans have a fixed tenure, and repayment from these loans is spread over the tenure of the loan. Such loan repayments generate the funds available for providing liquidity to lenders. Loan Defaults and delayed repayments from borrowers affect the amount of funds available for providing liquidity.
- Liquidity can be provided by other lenders to whom loans can be transferred. These other lenders take over the opportunity to earn returns from the loan portfolio. Such take over of loans by other lenders adds to funds available for providing liquidity
- Faircent offers Liquidity only on a best-effort basis. Faircent shall not be liable or responsible for any delay in or non-availability of Liquidity.
Q: Is my interest income through Faircent taxable?
A: All repayments you receive from Borrowers on Faircent will be without any tax deduction. We will provide an annual income statement to you to download from your dashboard. Earnings will be taxable as per the income tax rules that apply to you. Paying the applicable tax on income earned is your responsibility and Faircent is not liable for any default on the same.
Q: How long does it take to find Borrowers?
A: You can find active borrowers on the Faircent platform almost all the time. Credit worthy borrowers at low interest rates gets funded immediately and borrowers listed at high interest rates sometimes take a few days. It’s an open market place and finding a borrower matching your loan amount and desired rate of interest is dependent on your ability to manage your risk.
Q: Can a non-individual lend through Faircent? Can I lend through my company?
A: There is option for institutional lenders and NBFCs to fund through the website provided they meet the set criterion and accept the T&Cs. Please do CONTACT US to discuss this further.
Q: How is the lenders escrow account beneficial to me?
A: Escrow account ensures secure, fast and smooth transfer of funds with every transaction on the platform. Faster transactions lead to faster disbursal and faster lending. Automated, online transactions with least human interface means seamless accounting procedures.
Q: Is Faircent.com regulated by RBI?
A: Faircent.com is India’s first P2P lending platform to be receive the Certificate of Registration (CoR) as an NBFC-P2P from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Q: Is there a minimum amount for recharging Escrow Account?
A: Yes. The first recharge should be for a minimum amount of Rs. 10,000/-. A non-refundable fee of Rs. 100/- will be charged for every recharge of less than Rs. 10,000/- in to the Escrow Account, which will be deducted from your escrow balance.
Q: What is the maximum lending limit for a lender as per regulations?
A: As per regulatory guidelines, the aggregate exposure of a lender to all borrowers at any point of time, across all P2P platforms, shall be subject to a cap of ₹ 50,00,000/- provided that such funding of the lenders on P2P platforms are consistent with their net-worth. You can increase your funding limit from Rs. 10 lacs up to Rs. 50 Lacs by submitting a Net Worth certificate certifying minimum net-worth of ₹50,00,000/- signed by a practicing Chartered Accountant (CA).
Q: How can I get the net-worth certificate to increase my lending limit to Rs. 50 lacs?
You can contact a practicing Chartered Accountant (CA), provide all relevant documents and procure the certificate. Faircent also facilitates this service at a nominal charge. To know more, please contact your Portfolio or Relationship Manager or reach out to us on [email protected]