The fake loan app scandal is not going away anytime soon
April 30, 2021
It has become a game of cat-and-mouse game between law enforcement and predatory or fake lending apps in the country. Even as various police departments in the country are cracking down on these apps which mushroomed during the pandemic some of these apps are re-branding themselves and restarting operations. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which has been actively monitoring the issue, believes that these apps will continue to operate
for at least a year, if not more.
Over the last year, a number of unauthorised digital lending apps popped up on Google’s Play Store and other Android app store. But these apps charge exorbitant fees and interest rates, and resort to extortion and blackmail tactics to collect payments from borrowers. As a result, a number of borrowers have committed suicide beginning in October last year.