Achieving greatness in any field of work is no small feat. Be it academic excellence, business success or laurels in sports, achieving each of these requires immense grit, perseverance and hard-work on the part of an individual. But when this trifecta is implemented, it often results in success. Sonali Bansal's life journey serves as a fine example for the greatness one can achieve if they put their heart and soul into it.

Some know of her as an ace entrepreneur who founded, new-age FinTech digital lender, Paul Instacred. Others recognize her as an astute business-woman functioning as the CBO for Paul Merchants Finance, a leading non-banking financial institution (NBFC). To some Sonali is known as a stalwart of financial literacy in India while others recognize her for being an international tennis champion. Sonali today is driven by her objective of promoting financial inclusion along with financial literacy. This has led her to co-found another company Paul Fincare Pvt. Ltd, a neo-banking and micro-savings platform. A passionate crusader for women empowerment, Sonali has also launched NariTalks, a platform dedicated to amplifying women's voices and opinions through a series of webinars.

Sonali credits much of her success to her enthusiastic nature and resilience. But these qualities run much deeper and were imbibed at a much earlier age.

Her multipronged professional success is built on a strong educational foundation. Sonali comes armed with a major in Economics and a minor in Mathematics from the prestigious Wellesley College in the US. She was also presented with the opportunity to pursue studies at the London School of Economics as part of the study abroad program. The trailblazing business leader acknowledges the critical role played by her prestigious alma mater in the success that she has achieved so far.

Beyond the world of academics, Sonali also gained strategic experience at varied fields through multiple internships and jobs in the Fortune 500 companies such as EY, KPMG, Equirus Capital. After gathering ample experience, Sonali finally embarked on her entrepreneurial journey and built a startup which had been her dream for several years.

The Women Entrepreneur Magazine team conducted an in-depth interview with Sonali where she spoke to us about her various ventures and the underlying idea behind each of them. She also gave us a glimpse into her life beyond work along with nuggets of wisdom for upcoming entrepreneurs. Here are choice excerpts from the conversation.

Your journey in the financial industry began with your tryst with Paul Merchants Finance. Introduce us to the organization and what are the various roles that you have played at the organization?

For a couple of years I had worked with my father in the media and entertainment industry but found my calling in the finance industry with Paul Merchants Finance.

It is a leading non-banking financial institution (NBFC) and a fully owned subsidiary of Paul Merchants It is regulated by the RBI and aims to serve customers with fast and easy loan services. PMFPL started as a traditional business with 50+ branches spread across the country.

When I became a part of the organization, my goal was to disrupt that model and implement digital processes and acquisition strategies to run a successful digital lending business.

I started by building their first-ever digital product in the personal loan space. Right from product definition and design, product strategy, product pricing, and customer experience through 360-degree engagement programs, I spearheaded everything from concept to completion. I was also responsible for creating and implementing innovative schemes to cater to all the segments of the market along with continuous analysis of the platform to improve customer experience and reduce turnaround time for customers. My involvement in business partnering on cross-functional communications has fostered my ability to grow impeccably. I have created financial operations such as creating an impressive personal loan portfolio and controlled NPA to less than one percent within a few months of starting the B2C business.

Tell us about your entrepreneurial venture Paul Instacred (PICPL). What was the underlying idea behind founding the organization and what do you hope to achieve through its services?

Paul Instacred is a new-age FinTech digital lender that helps salaried, MSMEs, and SMEs in tier-II & tier-III cities in India meet their credit requirements with collateral-free loans. With a strong focus on technology based seamless credit assessment offering tailor-made schemes based on the credit requirements of the customers, Instacred envisions to solve the financial inclusion gap in the varied demographic segments of India.

The underlying principle for starting this firm was to use an end-to-end digital lending platform to cater to near-prime, sub-prime, and thin filer bands of the populace. There is a huge potential for digital players like us, with innovative and customized business solutions tailored to meet the needs and behavior of this segment, to capture and become a part of financial disruption.

Additionally, in India, more than 70 percent of people live in rural areas, and only 10 percent have access to organized credit and that is why banks are hesitant to give loans to people without credit scores. To top it all, the rampant COVID-19 pandemic became a roadblock to hassle-free lending. That's where we come into the picture. Consumers of today are digitally driven and we bank upon the onset of technology to reach maximum number of users. Our products have minimal documentation requirements, ingenious customer journeys and exceptional customer support. We use technology and alternative data sources to underwrite ­ allowing us to reach deeper into the customer base and serve even those who don't have any credit history.

Besides assessing the creditworthiness of the customers through conventional means, we also use artificial intelligence-based algorithms such as transactional information. We are exploring other forms of alternate data such as psychometric testing for cutting down on the turnaround time for final approval and disbursement. These models can help in identifying at-risk loans, thereby helping in reducing NPA and creating healthier loan books.

My aim is two-fold: promoting Financial Inclusion and Financial Literacy in India. In order to do so, I have co-founded another company Paul Fincare, a neobanking and micro-savings platform wherein we help customers achieve their targets by providing them with automated savings options which help them save without affecting their bank balance much. Now what makes this offering unique is the target group we are aiming - the young ones in 5-17 age bracket.

The idea is to teach them the art, science and potential of savings. I will consider myself fortunate if I am able to make thousands of youngsters money-confident and financially empowered.

Transitioning from being an employee at an organization to establishing one's own business can be a daunting journey. What was the shift like for you? How has your entrepreneurial journey been so far?

I remember starting my entrepreneurial journey at 25. My parents were supportive but equally hes it ant worried that it's a very young age to start my own business let alone a financial one. But I was determined to do so and as they say, rest is history.

Paul Instacred is my first experience in the entrepreneurial world. While I might be the brain behind its inception, equal amounts of credit goes to my team who have treated it like their own and have been instrumental in its growth at a managerial as well as ground level. There has been constant learning and knowledge sharing and I am thankful for my visionary and hard-working colleagues.

Achieving success is various walks of professional and personal life could not have been easy for you. In your opinion what are some of your intrinsic qualities or approach to leadership that have helped you traverse through your professional journey?

Decision-making was a quality I inculcated while growing up. I learned the importance of decision-making and farsightedness, especially when you've to take massive decisions on behalf of your organization for its betterment. There is a thin line between being spontaneous and decisive and my experience over the years has helped me distinguish between the two.

“The idea is to teach young Indians the art, science and potential of savings. I will count it as my biggest success when i succeed in making thousands of youngsters money-confident and financially empowered.”

Another important aspect of great leadership that I imbibed along the way was leading the team with enthusiasm. I always like to pump up my thoughts with positive energy and empower and motivate my team, not as a boss but as a mentor. It's very important to be how you want others to be and I stick by that rule.

My enthusiastic nature doesn't allow me to run the company in an autocratic manner. I follow an open-door policy where anyone and everyone can share their experiences, raise an issue, interact with one another and treat each other as equals. I firmly believe that you can only grow when your people grow and at the end of the day, a successful day at work is everyone's share to celebrate.

The kind of business I am into, recovery of loans, and collection of default customers requires a high level of endurance because things can get stressful My ability to persevere and be resilient even when things go wrong is what has helped me succeed in this business. I don't have the answer to every problem I face daily, but I have learned to embrace the ambiguity and seek solutions that are beneficial not just for the company, but also for its people.

Belief in one's self, compassion towards others, and immaculate oratorship are my three top picks that a leader must possess in order to succeed first in the eyes of their colleagues and team and then in front of the society as a whole.

Women's role in the workforce and the world in general has been evolving gradually yet steadily. What is your take on this evolution? How does your platform NariTalks contribute to women and their growth?

In today's times, the number of working women has increased substantially but the role of women in titular roles is still not very common. Men are still being promoted at a higher rate than women and Covid-19 has expanded this gender gap further. In the lockdown, the burden of house-related chores increased for the women and quite a few had to let go of their jobs to cater to their families' well-being. Unfortunately, the ratio of women's jobs became 1.8 times more vulnerable to the crisis than men's jobs.

“Irrespective of your age, educational qualification, or start-up idea, there'll be roadblocks, challenges, others' opinions, but you have to believe in yourself and strive towards excellence”

That's when I started a platform called NariTalks which is dedicated to amplifying women's voices and opinions through a series of webinars. The sole purpose behind this platform is to allow women to express their opinions thereby enhancing the knowledge about various pertinent issues affecting different segments of society and women's lives around the globe. I feel that this approach would empower, build confidence and improve outbreak preparedness as well as provide a better-gendered approach to the various issues affecting our communities. As a young Indian woman who is passionate and takes an immense interest in the future empowerment of Indian women, NariTalks is my way of making a small contribution towards raising awareness and creating a much safer environment for women in all aspects of life. 

The debut edition of NariTalks was held on 13th June 2020. The Webinar was titled `Changing female landscapes in the new normal post COVID -19', where the speaker panel consisted of eight highly successful and talented women leading their respective fields ranging from politics, journalism, medicine to media and entertainment. Throughout 2020 and the first half of 2021, I took up topics like `Promoting and supporting world breastfeeding', `Understanding the landscape of breast cancer in India', `Leading role of women in farmers protest', `Evolution of women rights: Gender equality in law' to understand the landscape of women's rights and more. My future plans for NariTalks are big; I am in talks with a Canadian company to create a full-fledged platform and application to provide a 360-degree support system for women.

In between tackling the various roles and responsibilities across all your ventures, how do you strive to strike a balance between your professional and personal life? Give us a glimpse of your life beyond work. 

Striking a work-life balance has always been a challenge especially in the digital age of today when there is so much to do and learn. Sometimes even a Sunday gets consumed if you happen to read a critical work email or check on an account or end up tackling a not-so-pleasant client. For years, I have been following a simple formula that helps me meet work deadlines while at the same time fulfilling my personal life responsibilities. Every day in the morning, I create a to-do list of my professional and personal tasks. It really helps me stay focused, not miss out on anything, and plan my day exactly how I'd like it to be.

When it comes to unwinding myself, I play Tennis. Being an international professional player for over 18 years, I find my center in the game. Not only has it strengthened my concentration skills, but it has also become a constant stress-reliever for me. Besides playing tennis, I like to read non-fiction novels which helps me gain perspective on staying relevant and articulate. To keep up with the ever-evolving world of today, I also enroll for short-term online courses that brush up my technological knowledge which helps me impeccably in devising business strategies and customer acquisition.

As a successful business leader what would your advice be to young women who aspire to become business leaders and entrepreneurs in the future?

Confidence and passion are the two things that you should always have by your side. Irrespective of your age, educational qualification, or start-up idea, there'll be roadblocks, challenges, others' opinions, but you have to believe in yourself and strive towards excellence. And sharing a philosophy which I practice in my daily life ­ You cannot lose in life; we either WIN or LEARN. So make as many mistakes as you want but make sure to accumulate the lesson and move on.

Do not let anyone or anything come in the way of your end goal and that's the only way to take a step closer to your vision. The government of India also recognizes the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs and has a plethora of programs and schemes that foster your business and help you gain recognition. You could become a part of an incubator or apply for any accelerator program.