Choosing microfinance software in Sri Lanka: a checklist
Twelve questions to ask any vendor, including us, before you move your loan book.
The FinanceMe.lk team. . 5 minute read.
There are more loan software options in Sri Lanka than ever. Most demonstrations look good. These questions help you see past the demo to how the software will behave in your company.
Lending
- Does it handle the way you lend today? Daily, weekly and monthly loans; flat and reducing interest; processing fees; penalties; guarantors; group loans. Ask to see your most unusual product set up.
- Does it skip Sundays, Poya days and holidays? A schedule that lands on Vesak Poya creates arrears that are not real.
- Does it show the effective annual rate? You will be asked for it, by borrowers or by a regulator.
Field work
- Does the collection app work without signal? Test it in airplane mode. Then switch signal back on and check the payment appears once, not twice.
- What does the borrower get? A receipt they can check later protects you as much as them.
- How is officer cash reconciled? If the answer is “in the accounts at month end”, keep looking.
People and languages
- Can each staff member use their own language? Not just the SMS: the screens your officers use all day.
- Can you control who does what? At minimum, the person who creates a loan should not be the one who approves it.
Money and data
- Is the price written down? Ask for the monthly price, what it includes, and what happens when you grow.
- Can you try it on your own loans? A free trial with real data tells you more than any demonstration.
- Can you take your data with you? Ask how you would export every customer, loan and payment if you left.
- What happens if you miss a payment? You should never be locked out of your borrowers’ records.
A note on bringing your loans across
Ask every vendor how they move an existing loan book, who does the work and how balances are checked. See our guide on moving from Excel for what to prepare.
Our answers
We built FinanceMe.lk to answer yes to all twelve. Prices are on our pricing page, the trial needs no card, and you can export your data at any time. Ask us anything at the contact page.