Kalyan Josyula : Catalyzing Change With Strategic Ingenuity In Fintech
Kalyan Josyula
Founder
In a private discussion with us, Kalyan discussed his involvement in the industry, his efforts to simplify the lives of those in need of financial assistance, and various other aspects.
Can you provide a concise overview of your professional history and encounters? What motivated you to create BASIC Home Loan?
I earned my MBA from ICFAI Business School, following an undergraduate degree in Computer Applications. Before pursuing my MBA, I gained experience as a software engineer, taking on part-time roles and engaging in freelance projects utilizing languages such as C, C++, and VB. After completing my MBA with a specialization in finance, I transitioned into the field of investment banking, starting my career at Credit Suisse. Over approximately seven years, I climbed the ranks from an analyst to an Assistant Vice President.
I then moved to Lazada in Singapore, initially handling regional finance and later leading BRP/ERP software implemen-tation. Subsequently, I served as the COO of the OLA Shuttle division at OLA Cabs, focusing on operations. Later, I became the Managing Director at Rocket Internet in Dubai, overseeing cross-border e-commerce logistics. COVID prompted my return, leading to the founding of BASIC Home
Loan in 2020, where I manage technology, operations, and the product as the COO. My motivation lies in tackling new challenges and learning, leveraging a tech background to innovate across various domains. My driving force is the pursuit of new challenges and the continuous quest for learning, utilizing my technological background to foster innovation across a variety of domains.
Characterize BASIC Home Loan as a company and elucidate its standing in the market.
BASIC Home Loan operates as a platform akin to Amazon, offering customers a selection of 75 plus loan options from various banks. Employing advanced technology, the platform assesses customer profiles, matches preferences with lender criteria, and presents tailored loan offers. Unlike traditional aggregators, BASIC Home Loan follow an end-to-end fulfillment model, actively assisting customers throughout the loan process until disbursement.
The platform charges no fees to customers; instead, banks pay commissions, shared with both originating influencers (e.g., real estate agents, CPAs) and fulfilment agents. Specializing in affordable housing, BASIC Home Loan primarily targets tier two and tier three cities, focusing on midincome and economically weaker segments. The platform's efficient technology facilitates the cost-effective processing of lower-ticket loans, providing customers with a seamless and free service.
How do you lead your team in utilizing technology to ensure a smooth customer experience?
Our organization has developed a comprehensive technology framework with a custom-built CRM serving agents, builders, banks, and customers. This CRM ensures seamless workflow management, providing end-to-end tracking for processes. For agents, it offers a gamified and user-friendly experience, while builders can efficiently track loan sanctions and property sales. Utilizing Angular for front-end apps, .NET 6 for microservices, and AWS for deployment, our infrastructure integrates complex communication channels and has initiated its lending franchise with a sophisticated credit decision system. Further, our plans include building a Loan Management
Not all startups are inherently innovative, & the key lies in thinking beyond conventional approaches
Characterize BASIC Home Loan as a company and elucidate its standing in the market.
BASIC Home Loan operates as a platform akin to Amazon, offering customers a selection of 75 plus loan options from various banks. Employing advanced technology, the platform assesses customer profiles, matches preferences with lender criteria, and presents tailored loan offers. Unlike traditional aggregators, BASIC Home Loan follow an end-to-end fulfillment model, actively assisting customers throughout the loan process until disbursement.
The platform charges no fees to customers; instead, banks pay commissions, shared with both originating influencers (e.g., real estate agents, CPAs) and fulfilment agents. Specializing in affordable housing, BASIC Home Loan primarily targets tier two and tier three cities, focusing on midincome and economically weaker segments. The platform's efficient technology facilitates the cost-effective processing of lower-ticket loans, providing customers with a seamless and free service.
How do you lead your team in utilizing technology to ensure a smooth customer experience?
Our organization has developed a comprehensive technology framework with a custom-built CRM serving agents, builders, banks, and customers. This CRM ensures seamless workflow management, providing end-to-end tracking for processes. For agents, it offers a gamified and user-friendly experience, while builders can efficiently track loan sanctions and property sales. Utilizing Angular for front-end apps, .NET 6 for microservices, and AWS for deployment, our infrastructure integrates complex communication channels and has initiated its lending franchise with a sophisticated credit decision system. Further, our plans include building a Loan Management
System (LMS) with machine learning to enhance the credit engine and digitize credit flows. The organization aims to expand its affordable housing presence by extending bank reach through agents and providing cost-effective loan solutions.
Describe your leadership style and the principles or methods you adhere to.
In terms of my leadership style, I embrace a culture of experimentation and openness to failure. I actively encourage my team to take risks and explore innovative approaches, fostering a mindset of innovation. I emphasize the importance of calculated risks, stressing the need for smart decision-making to limit potential losses. My approach involves initiating pilots before imple-menting any new idea, allowing the team to collaborate and refine the approach.
Whether successful or not, this strategy provides the team with the freedom to innovate and think entrepreneurially. I support them in estimating budgets, defining desired outcomes, and solving challenges in innovative ways. Overall, my leadership style is centered on empowering the team to think creatively, take calculated risks, and understand that failure is an acceptable part of the learning process.
Given your substantial professional expertise in the field, what guidance would you offer to emerging industry leaders?
In the realm of entrepreneurial leader-ship, my advice centers on the pivotal role of innovation. Rather than relying solely on the Founder's capabilities, my suggestion is to assemble a team of intelligent individuals, potentially even brighter than yourself. Delegating responsibilities and fostering a culture of risk-taking and creativity among the team is essential. Emphasizing the importance of thinking differently and encouraging innovative perspectives will ultimately lead to groundbreaking solu-tions within your company.
Kalyan Josyula, Founder, Basic Home Loan
Kalyan Josyula currently is the Founder of BASIC Home Loan. Leveraging expertise gained from prior positions at Rocket Internet SE, Ola (ANI Technologies), Lazada, and Credit Suisse, Kalyan Josyula holds an MBA in Finance from IBS Hyderabad (2003-2005). With a strong skill set encompassing Financial Modeling, Corporate Finance, Valuation, Investment Banking, Technology, Financial Analysis, and more, Kalyan Josyula provides valuable industry insights.
Describe your leadership style and the principles or methods you adhere to.
In terms of my leadership style, I embrace a culture of experimentation and openness to failure. I actively encourage my team to take risks and explore innovative approaches, fostering a mindset of innovation. I emphasize the importance of calculated risks, stressing the need for smart decision-making to limit potential losses. My approach involves initiating pilots before imple-menting any new idea, allowing the team to collaborate and refine the approach.
Whether successful or not, this strategy provides the team with the freedom to innovate and think entrepreneurially. I support them in estimating budgets, defining desired outcomes, and solving challenges in innovative ways. Overall, my leadership style is centered on empowering the team to think creatively, take calculated risks, and understand that failure is an acceptable part of the learning process.
Given your substantial professional expertise in the field, what guidance would you offer to emerging industry leaders?
In the realm of entrepreneurial leader-ship, my advice centers on the pivotal role of innovation. Rather than relying solely on the Founder's capabilities, my suggestion is to assemble a team of intelligent individuals, potentially even brighter than yourself. Delegating responsibilities and fostering a culture of risk-taking and creativity among the team is essential. Emphasizing the importance of thinking differently and encouraging innovative perspectives will ultimately lead to groundbreaking solu-tions within your company.
Kalyan Josyula, Founder, Basic Home Loan
Kalyan Josyula currently is the Founder of BASIC Home Loan. Leveraging expertise gained from prior positions at Rocket Internet SE, Ola (ANI Technologies), Lazada, and Credit Suisse, Kalyan Josyula holds an MBA in Finance from IBS Hyderabad (2003-2005). With a strong skill set encompassing Financial Modeling, Corporate Finance, Valuation, Investment Banking, Technology, Financial Analysis, and more, Kalyan Josyula provides valuable industry insights.