Financial services that allow immediate access to liquid cash in times of crisis are proving to be game-changers in the current Covid 19 scenario.

Despite the fact that the Covid-19 pandemic upended daily life in disparate ways and brought the world economy to its knees, the once-in-a-century crisis also served as a catalyst in changing people’s attitudes towards money. It drove home the important point that modern employees need new financial systems to support their financial health, as indicated by a survey conducted by Scripbox which found that one in every three employees in India considered financial health as their principal reason for stress. The same survey found that financial health was a more significant stressor than physical health and relationships. The pandemic has led to a timely course rectification, with many realising that financial support systems and models built during the age of standardisation are no longer pertinent, and there is a need for better financial products that can aid employees to get their personal finances in order.

One such financial product that has surfaced as a worker-friendly innovation is early wage/salary service that emerged as a lockdown lifesaver for many Indian employees. The financial product is intended to resolve the financial shortfalls that Indian salaried employees face. These shortfalls may arise due to medical emergencies, home and family-related expenses, EMI or loan repayments, which ultimately translates into diminished financial well-being and increased stress as a result. Furthermore, many studies and surveys suggest that a significant percentage of Indian employees live paycheck to paycheck, and have to resort to alternative finance options due to their inability to access liquid cash to cover impromptu expenses and medical emergencies. Overall the covid-19 pandemic has indicated the importance of emergency funds and the unexpected need for money, and that’s where early wage/salary fintech service comes into play.

One such salary advance fintech service that has gained traction in recent times is ‘Early Wage Access’ by Advantage Club, India’s largest employee engagement and benefits platform. As the name suggests, Early Wage Access is a financial by-product that provides timely assistance to people in their time of need. It allows employees the opportunity to extract a part of their monthly salary before payday without causing any inconvenience to the payroll and costs very little in convenience fees, in comparison to huge interests charged on personal loans from alternative sources, and helps employees to better manage their expenses in-between months. 

The company is of the belief that employees who require urgent financial aid may turn to close friends or fall into the trap of payday loans that further exacerbate their financial situation. Furthermore, Advantage Club, over the years, has acquired actionable insights on the pain points of employees, their credit needs, and how the COVID-19 crisis has intensified that need. These insights led them to devise an early wage solution that could address the situation and assist employees in its partner companies get access to alternative digital finance at a nominal fee compared to current industry standards.

Early Wage Access is integrated with the Advantage Club platform and is available for Indian employees of its partner companies. The employees can garner the benefits of Early Salary access through the existing digital platform of Advantage Club. It also integrates seamlessly with all payrolls, HRMS, single sign on and other systems. The feature is proving to be a game-changer in sync with the employee engagement platform, leading towards a more active and intact workforce. 

Advantage Club envisions creating the largest employee-centric financial wellness platform in the country. Through its Financial Wellness Offerings such as Early Wage Access, it has set out to help employees create a financial cushion in times of need.

“The pandemic has led to a timely course rectification, with many realising that financial support systems and models built during the age of standardisation are no longer pertinent.”

“A significant percentage of Indian employees live paycheck to paycheck, and have to resort to alternative finance options due to their inability to access liquid cash to cover impromptu expenses and medical emergencies.”