Posted by It doesn’t happen every day that I visit lenders in person. However, a few weeks ago, I announced in my Telegram group that my current journey through Southeast Asia might take me to Jakarta to meet with the Indonesian lender DanaRupiah.
This week, it actually worked out, and I was able to get an exciting insight into the status quo of the Indonesian fintech company on-site.
In this article, you will find a brief summary of the key information and results that I was able to find out.
Disclaimer 1: Currently, I am invested with over EUR 6,000 in DanaRupiah loans through Income Marketplace (conflict of interest). However, those who have followed me for a while should know that this does not prevent me from sharing my honest opinion.
Disclaimer 2: I did not receive any financial support for visiting DanaRupiah. I paid for both the flight and accommodation out of my own pocket. If you would like to support me financially, consider becoming a member at Buy Me A Coffee.
About DanaRupiah
DanaRupiah is a fintech company based in Indonesia that specializes in the financing of unsecured consumer loans in Indonesia. Founded on January 26, 2018, the lender is operated by the company “PT Layanan Keuangan Berbagi,” which is part of the parent company Weshare Group, based in Singapore.
Through Income Marketplace, investors have the opportunity to invest in loans from the Indonesian lender since December 2021. In the past, the lender has also been represented on other European P2P marketplaces, including Mintos and Bondster.
The name DanaRupiah is made up of the terms Dana (English: Money) and Rupiah (the national currency of Indonesia).
Weshare Group
DanaRupiah is part of the “Weshare Group”, a corporate group based in Singapore that operates in the international lending business. The company employs approximately 1,500 people worldwide, with around 200 working for DanaRupiah.
The currently active lending markets include Indonesia, the Philippines, Nigeria, and Mexico. In the past, the company has also been active in Vietnam and the Russian lending market.
Upon request, I was informed that the group manages assets totaling USD 306 million, distributed across the following countries:
- Nigeria: 150 million USD
- Mexico: 125 million USD
- Indonesia: 29 million USD
- Philippines: 2.2 million USD
A look at the corporate website reveals that the group heavily markets itself through topics like Big Data, Cloud Computing, and Artificial Intelligence. However, these technologies are primarily applied for its own business interests and are not sold as external services.
An assessment of the financial stability is currently not possible, as the group does not share financial reports of its business results.
Ownership and Management
Who are the key people behind DanaRupiah in the background of the company?
Ownership
Who owns DanaRupiah? The lender is operated by the Indonesian company “PT Layanan Keuangan Berbagi,” which in turn belongs to the parent company Weshare Group, based in Singapore.
The UBO (Ultimate Beneficial Owner) and sole shareholder of the company is the Chinese Jinghua Zhang. After completing his MBA at Peking University, he worked as an executive at Samsung and Motorola before founding the Weshare Group in 2014.
Management
Currently, about 200 employees work for DanaRupiah. During my stay in Jakarta, I primarily exchanged ideas with Christine Tandeans. She is 35 years old and has been with DanaRupiah since the very beginning. She is currently serving as the Vice President of Business Development for the lender.
The native Indonesian was recruited by the Weshare founder after completing her MBA at Peking University in China, with the aim of helping him establish a lending business in Indonesia.
Business Model
DanaRupiah’s business model is based on the financing of unsecured consumer loans in Indonesia, which is done 100% digitally.
In terms of lending, DanaRupiah offers two different products:
- Short-term consumer loans of up to a maximum of 3 months
- Installment loans with terms ranging from 3 to 6 months
Upon my inquiry, I learned that 70% of the financed loans are installment loans with a 3-month term.
The loan amount can range from EUR 22.80 (400,000 IDR) to EUR 1,425 (25 million IDR). However, the average financed loan amount is EUR 114 (2 million IDR).
Since its founding in 2018, the lender has financed approximately EUR 400 million in loans.
The profile of DanaRupiah’s borrowers looks as follows: low to middle income, 60% male, typically between 30 and 40 years old. The borrower repeat rate is said to be 80%. To date, DanaRupiah has served more than 1.8 million customers.
Monetization
How does DanaRupiah make money?
To understand this, it’s important to know that the Indonesian regulator OJK has currently set an interest rate cap of 0.3% per day. This means that on an annual basis, only a maximum of 108% can be earned through the lending business.
DanaRupiah pays itself a “platform fee” of 0.05% (18% per year). The remaining 0.25% (90% p.a.), if fully utilized, is transferred to the SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle) with the respective lender (for example, Income Marketplace).
These funds are then used to cover the platform commission (usually 2%), interest for the investors (up to 15% in the case of Income Marketplace), and for setting aside a cash reserve to meet the buyback obligation at any time. Additionally, any potential currency fluctuations (FX), the risk of which is borne by DanaRupiah, are managed and covered in this way.
Profitability
DanaRupiah has always been an extremely profitable lender. With the consolidated financial report for 2024, the company was able to achieve new record numbers in all areas.
- Revenue: EUR 25.5 million
- Net profit: EUR 14.1 million
- Equity: EUR 36.2 million (equity ratio: 68%)
Investors should be cautious regarding the reporting standard, as the consolidated financial reports are neither prepared by a larger, well-known auditor in Europe nor audited in accordance with IFRS standards.
Financing with P2P Loans
To finance part of its loan portfolio, DanaRupiah has previously collaborated with European P2P marketplaces such as Mintos and Bondster.
While I was given reasons why they no longer work with these P2P platforms, I have been asked to keep these reasons confidential and not communicate them publicly.
On the other hand, DanaRupiah has spoken extremely positively about its collaboration with Income Marketplace. Both the transparent and fast communication were praised, as well as the stable IT connection, which contributes to smooth tracking of transactions.
Since December 2021, investors have been able to invest in DanaRupiah loans on Income Marketplace and earn interest of up to 15%. With an open portfolio of EUR 5.3 million, DanaRupiah is currently the largest lender on the Estonian P2P marketplace.
Regulation
DanaRupiah has been under the control and supervision of the Indonesian Financial Services Authority (OJK) since May 19, 2020. A recurring topic of discussion has been the extent of the regulatory influence on the fintech company’s business development. Here are a few examples:
Interest Rate Caps (APR Caps)
Interest rate caps are a commonly used measure worldwide to curb the excessive usury of loan sharks. While the argument for consumer protection can be supported to some extent, increasingly smaller margins also mean the gradual extinction of non-bank lenders.
Currently, consumers can only be charged an interest rate of 0.3% per day for loan terms of up to 6 months (for longer terms, the rate is limited to 0.2% per day). In 2017, it was 1.2%, in 2018 it was 0.8%, and since 2023, it has been just 0.4%. The plan to introduce an APR cap of 0.2% at the beginning of 2025 was recently overturned.
The fact is that, while the margins for companies like DanaRupiah have become significantly smaller, the business model remains viable due to the acquisition of new market shares. However, the interest rate tightening cannot continue indefinitely before even the last non-bank lenders are forced to throw in the towel.
Financing Sources
Another challenge arises from the regulatory requirement for the sources of financing that can be used.
While European lenders are generally free to choose whether they want to finance their portfolio with subordinated shareholder loans, accumulated profits, bank loans, institutional investors, or P2P loans, the requirements of the Indonesian regulator have a much stronger influence on business development.
For example, lenders like DanaRupiah are not allowed to finance their loan portfolio with their own funds (equity). This likely explains why the company has such a high equity position (68%).
Additionally, only a maximum of 25% of the loan portfolio can be financed with non-bank sources. This is also why the portfolio on Income Marketplace has never grown beyond EUR 8 million.
Currently, DanaRupiah works with four Indonesian banks. However, due to NDAs, they could not provide me with the exact names.
Risk Management
There are also significant interventions and requirements from the Indonesian regulator OJK regarding risk management. Among other things, five different reports must be submitted to the regulatory authority on a regular basis.
This includes a monthly report, which must contain current data on the outstanding loan portfolio (NPLs, collection figures, complaints, etc.). Additionally, a six-month report, an annual financial statement, a business plan, and a document outlining the realization of the business plan must also be submitted.
Borrower Assessment
The risk assessment of borrowers, from an external perspective, doesn’t differ much from the approach of many other lenders. Initially, information is gathered and evaluated from all available registers, followed by a biometric check of the borrower. According to their own statements, up to 30,000 data points are retrieved and verified during the credit assessment process.
I found it interesting that DanaRupiah reportedly sold its credit assessment service to other companies before the pandemic.
NPLs
In the monthly report that must be submitted to OJK, there are also figures regarding non-performing loans (NPLs), which are defined by a payment arrears of 90+ days.
According to their own statements, DanaRupiah has an NPL rate of 3%.
If the NPL rate exceeds 5%, the lender must explain itself to the regulator. The range of penalties for this is quite broad, starting from a simple explanation of why the NPLs are so high and how they plan to address the issue, to the temporary suspension of operations or even a complete suspension by the OJK.
Collection Process
The collection process at DanaRupiah takes place in multiple stages. It starts with SMS notifications, followed by phone calls, and in some cases, even personal visits. These visits occur if the borrowers are located in urban centers and the loan amount is at least 10 million IDR (EUR 570).
So far, DanaRupiah has not written off any defaulted loans as a loss. Additionally, the sale of outstanding receivables has not occurred yet.
Perhaps due to the potential consequences from the OJK, more than half of DanaRupiah’s 200 employees are responsible for the collections department.
Conclusion and Opinion
Personally, I always find it exciting and fascinating to delve into the business models of different lenders in detail. The appeal of a non-European company is particularly noteworthy in this context.
Due to potential language barriers or the fact that many pieces of information could not be communicated, the meeting initially seemed a bit uncertain. However, in hindsight, these concerns and doubts turned out to be unfounded. Both Christine and Novi were very dedicated and transparent contacts who took the whole day to speak with me and answer my questions.
As a result, the experience leaves me with an overall very good and positive feeling.
Content-wise, I was particularly reminded of the significant regulatory influence. While I fully understand the importance of consumer protection, non-bank lenders play a crucial role in supporting and empowering people who are excluded from the traditional banking system.
My hope is that the Indonesian regulator creates thoughtful and fair conditions, so that in the end, all parties – borrowers, DanaRupiah, and investors – can benefit.
If you want to invest in loans from DanaRupiah, please use the following partner link for Income Marketplace. You can also read my detailed Income Marketplace Review beforehand.
If you would like to support my work in other ways, for example, to help finance part of my travel costs, you can subscribe or make a one-time payment via Buy Me A Coffee.
Hi, ich bin Denny! Seit Januar 2019 schreibe ich auf diesem Blog über meine Erfahrungen beim Investieren in P2P Kredite. Meine Analysen sollen Investoren dabei helfen reflektierte und gut informierte Anlageentscheidungen treffen zu können. Dafür schaue ich mir die Risikoprofile der einzelnen P2P Plattformen an, hinterfrage deren Entwicklungen und teile meine persönlichen Einschätzungen mit meiner Community. Mein Bestseller "Geldanlage P2P Kredite" gilt in Fachkreisen als das beste deutschsprachige Finanzbuch zum gleichnamigen Thema.