Perfios, born amid the 2008 financial turmoil, has evolved into a fintech force. Growing at 100% YoY, the company’s global mission, "Made in India for the World," addresses universal financial challenges, showcasing India's innovation.
Back in 2008, the financial world was in turmoil, reaching its peak with Lehman Brothers going bankrupt. Cloud computing was just starting to become popular, and ideas like Aadhar and Unified Payment interface (UPI) hadn’t even crossed people’s minds.
It was during this time that V R Govindrajan and Debasish Chakraborty, experts in product development from their time at Aztec Software, joined forces.
The duo decided to create a tool that would provide a single dashboard for finances. The objective was to enable retail individuals to consolidate and manage their portfolios and debt in an automated manner.
This was the genesis of Personal Finance One Stop (Perfios).
Perfios soon scaled its MVP and launched MyFinance, a cloud-based Personal Finance Management (PFM) solution. It aggregated financial data from disparate sources – bank accounts, credit and debit cards, mutual funds, insurers, lenders, and so on – to provide a 360-degree view of financials, steering people away from Excel usage.
“It has been an exciting journey, full of learning experiences since our humble beginnings. Initially, the focus was on technology and innovation. We built a platform capable of aggregating, understanding, curating, and analyzing diverse data for various uses. The first two years were about research and development, and when we hit the ground, we realized the challenges we needed to address, especially the cautious spending behavior of Indian consumers,” says Sabyasachi Goswami, CEO of Perfios Software Solutions.
Recognizing the post-2008 opportunity, and transitioning from B2C to B2B, the company started to approach progressive banks and NBFCs.
“We faced both positive and negative responses. With the support of those who believed in us, we experimented and grew. Today, we stand with over 1,000 clients, 300+ APIs, and 75+ products,” Goswami says.
Keeping customers at the heart of innovation
For Perfios, innovation is like solving real-life puzzles.
Imagine a puzzle with different pieces representing a customer’s journey in banking, insurance, capital markets, NBFCs and fintech space. The company starts by looking at challenges that these businesses face, understanding their current issues and anticipating what might trouble them over the next few years.
“It’s like predicting future challenges. For example, let’s talk about onboarding solutions. Every industry, whether it’s manufacturing, finance, or FMCG, needs efficient onboarding. So, when we create a solution for one sector, like banking, we know it can be valuable for others too,” Goswami says.
He points out that every day brings challenges like conflicts, financial frauds, and the complexities of digital transformation. With a large population lacking full awareness of financial matters, actions often lead to fraud.
“That’s where we step in. We’re developing solutions to tackle fraud at an individual level and for the overall organization. For instance, let’s dive into insurance. Fraud happens during the claims process, intentionally or not. It’s similar to receiving medication for a wrong disease, which is a form of wastage and abuse. Our goal is to find innovative ways to prevent this. It’s like creating a shield to protect people from unnecessary complications during their health journeys,” Goswami says.
For Perfios, innovation isn’t just about technology; it’s about understanding the real problems companies face.
“We interact with our customers to get an ‘outside in’ view, understand their challenges. We then go back to our ‘drawing room’ to brainstorm and create solutions that will mitigate their pain points,” Goswami says.
Being agile in business means more than just adapting to change quickly—it’s also about ‘out-innovating’ the competition efficiently. Business leaders often encounter both known and unknown challenges in the market. Keeping a keen eye on market signals is crucial, allowing timely responses to minimize risks and sustain business growth.
“We have AI and ML as part of our toolkit that provide us with signals. It’s like peeling an onion; with each layer, we discover new ways to advance. We started with Machine Learning, then Artificial Intelligence, and now Generative AI,” Goswami says.
Going global: Made in India for the world
Having had a humble beginning in India, Perfios has now spread its wings to around 18 countries. The company kicked off its expansion journey by exploring nearby places like South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
“Our eyes are set on the future, as we look to step into the US and Europe very soon. Back in 2010, when we crafted our platform, the motto was clear: “Made in India for the World.” Why? Because financial challenges are like puzzles everywhere. Low financial literacy, limited access to credit, inconsistent data – these issues are not exclusive to one region. So, we decided, why not share our solutions globally?” Goswami says.
This approach not only benefits Perfios but also adds a feather to India’s cap. Exporting indigenous products showcases the country’s prowess on the global stage.
“Our products are finding homes across the globe, solving financial challenges for people across the globe,” says Goswami.
Speaking about numbers, Perfios expects that this global expansion could contribute 25% to its overall growth. “Currently, it’s around 9-10%, but we’re optimistic, aiming to close the year at 12-15%,” Goswami says.
In terms of profits, Perfios has been sailing on the profitable boat for the last five years.
“Despite being profitable, we’re not slowing down. We are targeting an ambitious 80 to 100% growth this year,” Goswami says.
IPO dreams
The fintech SaaS player is planning for an initial public offering (IPO) over the next 18 to 24 months.
“Internally, we’re gearing up on all fronts. Technology is our strong suit, and we’re reinforcing it. Our strength also lies in our people and being customer-centric. We recently appointed Sumit Nigam as chief technology officer and Anu Mathew as chief people officer. Having said this, some things are under our control, while others are not. The broader market conditions are not something we can manage; it’s up to the market to decide. If the conditions are right, we’ll proceed; if not, we might have to wait,” Goswami says.
