Home First Finance To Log 30% Growth Driven Via Expansions, Higher Market Share: CEO

Home First Finance Company India Ltd. is set to clock a 30% revenue growth rate for the foreseeable future, backed by acquisition of new market share, according to the company's Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Manoj Viswanathan. The non-banking finance company will focus on expansion to new geographies, while also increasing penetration within the existing states in its network, he told NDTV Profit.

“Broadly, for us, growth will come from three vectors. One is expanding geography, it is not about expanding to new states. We are currently present in 13 states and we are going to expand to new districts and cities within these states. The second vector is deeper penetration within existing cities. We are already present in 200 cities, so there may be parts of the city which are still not penetrated by us," he said.

Home First has seen strong with strong market share acquisition through better service and processes, Viswanathan said.

"This gives us the confidence we will be able to hit the 30% growth rate for the foreseeable future,” the top executive said.

The company is more focused on return on equity, as net interest margins are likely to compress with the addition of debt to the balance sheet, he said.

"We have been delivering industry-leading RoEs. So, 16% plus we have crossed for the last two quarters. We are confident that we will deliver 17–18% RoEs in this business," he said.

He talked about the ‘growth runway’ for the affordable housing industry in India, given growth occurs in India’s gross domestic product and per capita income.

Citing examples of more developed states like Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra, where the mortgage to GDP ratio is higher than in other parts of the country, Viswanathan predicted a growth runway for affordable housing or the housing industry as a whole.

"As GDP increases and per capita income increases, the mortgage penetration is going to keep on increasing,” Viswanathan said.