Loan Origination System

End‑to‑End Commercial Lending Technology: Eliminating Operational Bottlenecks

By Biz2x Team

As a business leader at an Indian bank or NBFC, you’re already aware of the RBI’s stringent lending norms. To add on to that, legacy systems bog down your commercial lending with manual underwriting delays and compliance issues, thereby reducing profitability. 

In today’s market, where business loans are growing, a commercial lending technology could reduce loan origination times by half, enhance risk management, and scale to support India’s digital economy. 

This article explains end-to-end commercial lending technology and how it eliminates bottlenecks for financial institutions like yours. Let’s transform your commercial lending from friction-filled to future-ready.

The Imperative for Digital Transformation in Indian Commercial Lending

The rapid growth of commercial lending in India has reached new heights, with the total assets under management (AUM) of the NBFC sector expected to exceed ₹48 lakh crore by the end of FY25. However, traditional lending operations remain based on legacy systems, which can reduce efficiency across the entire loan lifecycle. The key to solving these issues lies in commercial lending technology, which supports digital transformation by automating most of the loan lifecycle, from borrower onboarding through servicing. 

Use of commercial lending technology by banks and other financial institutions enables real-time decision-making aligned with the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) EASE (Enhanced Access & Service Excellence) government programs, increasing operational efficiency while reducing credit risk. Traditional commercial lending relies on paper for all information related to a commercial loan application. Subsequently, this typically results in approval taking weeks or more (due to slow processing times). 

Commercial lending software provides lenders with visibility into the entire loan lifecycle. According to providers of commercial lending software, lenders in India that adopt such technology experience faster loan origination, which also improves profitability. For commercial lenders to succeed in a fintech-driven market, adopting commercial lending technology is essential to the marketplace’s survival.

How Commercial Lending Technology Streamlines Workflows

Technological advancements in commercial lending have transformed how lenders work by automating repetitive tasks, enabling them to focus on making significant lending decisions. Lenders use artificial intelligence (AI) powered technologies to instantly review financial statements and rate the risk associated with them during the loan origination process, which is a faster process compared to how it has traditionally been done. 

The automation continues within underwriting, where machine learning models use RBI-specific guidelines to determine whether a borrower is being treated appropriately based on their borrowing history. Commercial lending software used by Indian financial institutions provides seamless integration with their core banking systems via APIs that enable real-time data transfer between front-office borrower processing and back-office loan servicing, ensuring both processes use the same information. 

This process also eliminates the silo effect that exists between the two functions, allowing for more streamlined lending processes. The use of commercial lending technology by NBFCs has allowed these companies to reduce operational costs, according to the Fintech Association. With commercial lending software, lenders can create customizable dashboards to monitor loan applications and conduct proactive risk assessments, ultimately improving customer relationships.

  • Enhancing Risk Management and Regulatory Compliance

    One of the main concerns for commercial lending in India today is credit risk. Commercial lending technology leverages advanced risk management through artificial intelligence and machine learning to deliver accurate risk ratings during the underwriting process.

    Real-time analysis of financial data identifies irregularities in a borrower’s financials, helping the lender make an informed decision that complies with IRDAI and RBI regulatory guidelines. In addition to providing automated tracking throughout the loan life cycle from origination through repayment, this software also implements the IRDAI and RBI requirements for regulatory compliance.

    For commercial lenders, this means having access to a scalable platform that can quickly adapt to external demand volatility, such as surges in small-business applications during the holiday season. By automating many of the decisioning processes, businesses using this technology reduce human biases in decision-making, which is in support of RBI’s push for fair lending practices.

    Fintech reports indicate that banks and lenders using commercial lending technology will, on average, reduce their credit risk exposure, thereby protecting institutional profitability.

  • Accelerating Loan Approvals and Borrower Onboarding

    Commercial banks typically take 15 to 30 days to process a loan due to their disjointed workflows. But with commercial lending technology, that time can be reduced to 48 hours by using digital lending interfaces that allow borrowers to upload their documents once for instant data verification.

    Optical character recognition (OCR) software that uses AI automatically extracts relevant data from the applicant’s financial statements and feeds it directly into automated underwriting engines to expedite loan decisions. NBFCs in India using commercial lending software report increased customer satisfaction, as applicants can complete onboarding without issues.

    This integrated approach not only streamlines the commercial loan application process but also fosters long-term relationships between financial institutions and their customers. Financial institutions have seen an increase in repeat-business loans due to a real-time pricing model that offers competitive terms based on borrowers’ needs. As a result, lenders are optimising their lending processes and turning bottlenecks into fast-track processes.

  • Boosting Operational Efficiency Across the Lending Lifecycle

    Commercial lending technology effectively addresses inefficiencies associated with post-origination loan servicing. By using automated reminders and payment gateways, lenders can better track loan repayments, reducing the number of commercial loans that fall into delinquency.

    Additionally, commercial lending software provides banks with a comprehensive dashboard view of the entire loan lifecycle, from loan origination system uploads through to maturity. This system creates a scalable infrastructure that will help accelerate the growth of India’s fintech ecosystem, where lending platforms can connect to UPI and Aadhaar (for KYC).

    With automation reducing back-office staffing requirements, banks can reallocate their staffing resources to strategic initiatives. Additionally, commercial lenders based in Tier-2 cities have leveraged technology to expand their portfolios.

  • Boosting Operational Efficiency Across the Lending Lifecycle

    Commercial lending technology effectively addresses inefficiencies associated with post-origination loan servicing. By using automated reminders and payment gateways, lenders can better track loan repayments, reducing the number of commercial loans that fall into delinquency.

    Additionally, commercial lending software provides banks with a comprehensive dashboard view of the entire loan lifecycle, from loan origination system uploads through to maturity. This system creates a scalable infrastructure that will help accelerate the growth of India’s fintech ecosystem, where lending platforms can connect to UPI and Aadhaar (for KYC).

    With automation reducing back-office staffing requirements, banks can reallocate their staffing resources to strategic initiatives. Additionally, commercial lenders based in Tier-2 cities have leveraged technology to expand their portfolios.

  • Real-World Impact: Case Studies from Indian Financial Institutions

    Using commercial lending technology, an NBFC in Mumbai has restructured its commercial lending processes. Previously, the company took 20 days to originate a loan; following the implementation of this system, that time was reduced to 2 days, enabling real-time decision-making.

    Machine learning helped reduce credit risk by 28% and brought the bank into compliance with the Reserve Bank of India’s PCA regulations, thereby boosting profits. In a similar case, a Southern Bank adopted commercial lending software to manage business loans for MSMEs.

    By automating underwriting and servicing, the bank delivered a better customer experience to over 50,000 customers. Improvements in operational efficiency have also been evident, with loan approvals up 45% and non-performing assets down, demonstrating the benefits of digital transformation. Both cases demonstrate that commercial lending technology delivers clear ROI for financial services providers.

  • Overcoming Legacy Systems: A Roadmap for Adoption

    To succeed in migrating away from legacy loan systems, lenders must implement the transition in phases. The first step should be to analyse current pain points in their commercial lending processes.

    For example, a commercial lender must manually perform risk assessments. Lenders need to determine which commercial lending providers comply with the local Indian data protection laws before proceeding. The best way to get started is to pilot commercial lending technology in high-volume commercial loan segments, using APIs to connect to real-time data for integration and to train teams on AI-enabled tools to streamline borrower onboarding.

    Once the rollout is complete, lenders will experience optimized end-to-end loan processes, enabling scalable growth. By following this roadmap, lenders can reduce the time required to manage a loan lifecycle by at least 50%.

  • Future-Proofing Commercial Lending with Emerging Tech

    Commercial lending technology is evolving in response to new trends, including the use of blockchain for secure record-keeping and predictive analytics to proactively manage risk.

    The Reserve Bank of India is supporting Fintech companies by providing a sandbox for experimentation and by allowing commercial lending software to include ESG metrics in green business loan applications.

    When lenders invest today, they are preparing for the digital-first borrower of 2030 and will have a greater chance of profitability long after those customers are satisfied.

Final Thoughts 

In order to overcome any operational bottleneck that exists when conducting commercial lending in India’s banking system and other financial institutions (banks, NBFCs, and other financial institutions), developing a solution that incorporates commercial lending technology will help clear these bottlenecks through the use of automation, real-time feedback, and a scalable commercial lending software solution. 

The result will be an improved loan origination process, reduced credit risk, and improved customer experience. Take advantage of this opportunity now by implementing a pilot commercial lending solution to unlock the efficiency, compliance, and future growth opportunity in India.

FAQs About Commercial Lending Technology

  • What is a commercial lending system?

    It provides businesses with financing to expand, including working capital loans, equipment and asset financing, and facility or real estate expansion. These lending solutions help businesses scale and bridge financial gaps.

  • What are the 4 Cs of commercial lending?

    As a business owner or a would-be borrower, the 4 Cs of commercial lending are the key to success. These include capacity, collateral, capital, and character. Lenders evaluate these four essential elements to determine the loan decision.

  • What are the types of commercial lending?

    Lines of credit, term loans, and commercial mortgages are among the most common types of commercial loans. Unless otherwise noted, commercial loans tend to be secured, i.e., collateralized by tangible assets.

  • How does commercial lending work?

    Commercial loans provide companies with immediate capital to fund specific projects, repaid over a set period with regular payments. Commercial lines of credit are revolving credit accounts that allow business owners to borrow up to a predetermined limit, repay, and borrow again as needed.

  • What are the five 5 types of loans?

    As a loan officer, the five types of loans that you will be dealing with most are as follows: mortgages, seed or working capital on small businesses, automotive loans, school loans, and personal loans.

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