BILITI Electric gets financing approval from SIDBI for its GMW Taskman Electric 3 Wheelers Autos – EQ Mag Pro
New Delhi : California-based BILITI Electric Inc announced that Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), the principal financial institution engaged in the promotion, financing and development of MSMEs, has approved to sanction loans to those who are interested in purchasing GMW Taskman Electric 3W Autos, through its ‘Digital Prayaas’ program.
‘Digital Prayaas’ is an App-based end to end digital lending platform to facilitate access to low-cost borrowings for micro-entrepreneurs/micro enterprises. Further, to cater to the aspiring youths in the urban area, SIDBI has also tied up with a major aggregato r viz., BigBasket, to on board its delivery partners across the country and provide loans at an affordable interest rate for purchase of environment friendly electric vehicles suitable for deliveries.
The development enables BigBasket delivery partners to purchase GMW Taskman 3W vehicles at 8-10% interest rate and provide a regular stream of revenue, allowing them to lead a sustainable livelihood. BILITI’s Taskman vehicle is first in the e-van segment to get financing approval as part of the program.
Department of Financial Services Secretary Mr. Debasish Panda while launching the initiative, appreciated the role played by SIDBI in meeting the financial requirements of the people at the bottom of the pyramid by offering loans at an affordable rate through its Digital Prayaas programme.
SIDBI Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Sivasubramanian Ramann said “the App facilitates speedy onboarding of loan applicants in a digital and integrated process which has made the entire programme scalable with better risk management and would further improve customer satisfaction.”
Speaking on this occasion, BigBasket CEO Hari Menon said that they are delighted about this partnership. “The initiative to offer loans will have a positive impact on the livelihood of hundreds of our delivery associates and also fulfills its social objectives,” said Hari Menon.
“We are extremely happy to collaborate with SIDBI-BigBasket on this unique financing option for BILITI Taskman 3-wheeler electric vehicles. SIDBI has been at the forefront of assisting and developing MSMEs, since its inception. We are one of the early EV partners for BigBasket. Thanks to BigBasket for being an early adopter of our EVs, and for creating EV friendly warehouses by providing charging and parking facilities across the country” said Rahul Gayam, CEO, BILITI Electric.
BILITI Electric currently operates through an exclusive manufacturing partnership with Hyderabad- based Gayam Motor Works (GMW) for manufacturing its three-wheelers. Biliti’s TaskmanTM is a popular last-mile delivery vehicle that is deployed in 15 countries across the globe including Japan, the USA, the UK, France, Portugal, Germany, Lebanon, Uganda, Kenya, Senegal, Nepal, Bangladesh, Dubai, and India and has covered over 20 million miles. TaskmanTM is being used by Amazon, IKEA, Wasoko (Sokowatch), BigBasket (Tata), Zomato, Flipkart (Walmart), and JioMart (Reliance) among others. The TaskmanTM has already made more than 12 million deliveries worldwide with many more to come. Its batteries and drivetrain are compact and modular in design, allowing them to have wider applications in auto, marine, warehousing, and backup power sectors enabling the buildout of an EV ecosystem.
About BILITI Electric
Founded in 2021, BILITI Electric is a fast-growing electric mobility company that designs and manufactures compact EVs. BILITI exports compact electric vehicles to more than 15 countries, including the European Union. BILITI’s Founder Rahul Gayam has been listed among Forbes Asia 30 under 30 in 2018 and was a Global Fellow of Mercedes-Benz EQ in 2019.
About SIDBI
Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) is the apex regulatory body for overall licensing and regulation of micro, small and medium enterprise finance companies in India. It is under the Jurisdiction of the Ministry of Finance, Government of India headquartered at Lucknow and having its offices all over the country. Its purpose is to provide refinance facilities to banks and financial institutions and engage in term lending and working capital finance to industries, and serves as the principal financial institution in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector. SIDBI also coordinates the functions of institutions engaged in similar activities. It was established on 2 April 1990, through an Act of Parliament. SIDBI is one of the four All India Financial Institutions regulated and supervised by the Reserve Bank of India; the other three are India Exim Bank, NABARD and NHB. But recently NHB came under government control by taking more than 51% stake. They play a statutory role in the financial markets through credit extension and refinancing operation activities and cater to the long-term financing needs of the industrial sector.
About Bigbasket
Bigbasket is one of the leading online grocery platforms and India’s largest online supermarket which has been spearheading the drive for sustainability in e-commerce operations in India. Bigbasket has now become India’s first brand to offer packaging-free doorstep delivery of fresh fruits and vegetables. The company was the first brand in its category to introduce EVs for delivery. Currently, 30% of Bigbasket’s delivery fleet is electric and the company aims to have 70% EVs by 2024. It is also using solar energy across its warehouses in 9 cities and generating enough clean energy to power over 4.5 lakh households. Further, Bigbasket’s biomass-powered cooling systems consume less than 10% of power compared to conventional refrigeration, further leading to reduction in greenhouse gasses emissions. Bigbasket too forayed into the space, late last year with its express deliveries.
