Working Capital for Startups and SMEs: What Lenders Actually Look For

Your P&L says you made a profit. Your bank account disagrees. That gap is the most common reason a growing business runs out of money - you are not losing money, you are funding your customers. In Session 2 of Jargon Buster Conversations, I speak with Fariq Naushad, Co-founder of PayLedger, which lends short-term working capital to Indian SMBs. Because he sits on the credit side of the table, this covers ground most advisory conversations cannot: what an application actually looks like from the lender's desk, and what gets it declined. We cover why a profitable business runs out of cash and how to read your own cash conversion cycle. The full range of options, from cash credit and overdraft through invoice discounting, TReDS, purchase order finance and revenue-based financing, and which one fits which problem. How to work out what a facility really costs once you get past the headline rate. Why banks decline businesses whose numbers look perfectly sound. Receivables protection, which most owners have never been offered. And what to fix in your books six months before you need money, because that is when the decision is really made. If you have ever chased a payment while paying a salary, this one is for you. GUEST Fariq Naushad, Co-founder, PayLedger https://www.payledger.in HOST CA. Abhijith Preman, Founder and Designated Partner, Abhijith Preman & Co. LLP, Chartered Accountants Jargon Buster Conversations is a series where I sit down with specialists and ask the questions founders and business owners actually need answered, in plain language. One hour, no jargon, open audience questions at the end. Subscribe to catch Session 3. Note: Due to a technical issue, our guest joined by audio for this session. Positions discussed reflect the law as at the date of recording, 11 September 2026. General in nature, not advice on any specific situation.