This article was written by Accion and Beksar and originally published here. In partnership with Mastercard Strive, this program provides micro and small enterprises in Kazakhstan with enhanced retail tech business operations.

Lyazzat Dobrasheva has operated a small women’s clothing store in Kazakhstan for several years. She’s using a retail tech solution from Beksar, a Mastercard Strive partner, to manage her operations. Since 2023, Beksar, an IT startup, has supported more than 4,000 micro and small enterprises (MSEs) in Kazakhstan with this retail tech solution, a software that includes modules to manage sales, marketing, customer loyalty rewards, inventory, procurement, and other business areas. Users can obtain real-time data on business performance and conduct controls remotely at any time. Process automation enables business owners and managers to optimize efficiency in retail and service operations while driving sales growth.

Lyazzat values Beksar’s reliability as an operations system and the clarity of its analytics. In particular, she cites improvements in her inventory and sales management with the system. Using reports and analytics, she identified underperforming clothing categories and adjusted her purchases to prioritize higher-volume, more profitable ones. She also reduced routine work in the store, freeing up time for more important tasks.

However, Lyazzat often faced cash flow gaps, especially during seasonal restocking, when she needed to purchase new clothing collections quickly. When Beksar launched its new embedded credit feature, in partnership with MOST Finance, Lyazzat was among the first micro-retailers to try it. The entire process took just a few hours. She completed her application in a couple of minutes and submitted it online. Using the eGov mobile app offered by the Government of Kazakhstan, she digitally consented to MOST Finance processing her data. The review of her application took only a couple of hours, and once her loan was approved, she could review the relevant agreements and sign digitally via the eGov app. The funds were deposited in her account the same day.

“The loan really helped me to expand my business,” Lyazzat explained. “Very fast processing, funds received the same day, and convenient loan terms. I’m very satisfied and look forward to continued cooperation.” With this new credit access feature within Beksar’s solution, she restocked her business at an opportune time, maintained a stable assortment of items, and avoided short-term financial disruptions.

Aldiyar Sadvakassov, another Beksar client, has been using the solution to manage the daily operations of his auto parts store. With the addition of the credit feature, he has obtained and repaid three loans to support his business’s growth over the past year. According to Aldiyar, the simplicity and speed of the loan application and evaluation process exceeded his expectations. With minimal documentation requirements and same-day loan approval from MOST Finance, he was able to respond quickly to operational needs and expansion opportunities.

“Beksar helps us operate and grow,” Aldiyar says. “Each time, the process was fast, convenient, and straightforward. There were no unnecessary discussions, long checks, or excessive paperwork. I used the financing to pay employee salaries and expand my product range. Everything was done in just a few clicks.”

Lyazzat and Aldiyar are among 40 Beksar clients who obtained credit from MOST Finance through this new feature, which was launched as part of a Mastercard Strive project to unlock credit for small businesses in the country. More than $300,000 in working capital loans for their businesses have been disbursed during this initial stage of this collaboration. The portfolio quality has remained strong throughout the year.

Lessons learned from Beksar’s embedded credit feature

During the initial testing of the feature, the lending process involved more manual steps, which slowed down approvals and disbursements. We have learned from these initial challenges and made the process simpler and faster for MSEs like Lyazzat and Aldiyar. Our key lessons so far include:

Partnerships offer important opportunities to enhance support for MSEs

In the early years of operations, Beksar repeatedly heard from clients that access to financing was critical, especially at key moments and seasons, but many lenders imposed excessive requirements and were slow to respond to small businesses. However, this feature was outside of the scope of what a retail tech startup could offer. Beksar did not have the funding, the lending skills and experience within its team, or the risk management system to obtain a license and offer credit directly.

As a partner, MOST Finance brought those competencies, as well as a keen interest in financing MSEs through digital platforms. A partnership based on revenue sharing and serving this key market segment took shape. Beksar could offer its clients access to MOST loans and complement the revenue from its solution subscription fees with a share in the loan fees.

Data analytics and segmentation improve understanding of small business behaviors

Through the partnership with Accion and Mastercard Strive, Accion provided advisory support in analyzing Beksar’s clients’ data and developing segmentation scoring models. These scores can be used to improve the solution’s functionalities and features, target potential users, encourage client loyalty, price new products or features, and design other services.

The initial segmentation analysis indicated that solution churn was higher than expected. The solution’s value proposition for our core segments needed review. Beksar began conducting deeper market research to better understand the drivers of churn. Based on a thorough statistical analysis of sales transaction data by Accion, the segmentation scoring models predict how active users will be in the short-term future. Beksar has begun to use the scores to identify which clients may be appropriate borrowers for MOST to consider. MOST disbursed more than $50,000 in total loans to clients who were proposed using these scores.

Digital solutions can reduce burdens and enhance trust

In Kazakhstan, many MSEs are reluctant to apply for credit from traditional financial providers due to the onerous application and time requirements. Similarly, while most MFOs deploy loan officers into the field to evaluate MSEs at their business premises, this can also consume considerable time.

At the same time, MSEs and consumers in Kazakhstan regularly receive digital promotions for digital financial services but cannot always distinguish legitimate lenders from fraudsters. This has reduced trust for many people in digital financial services.

This initial stage of testing Beksar’s new credit feature demonstrated that MSEs sufficiently rely on digital solutions to apply for formal credit without leaving their business premises or interacting in person with a loan officer. This process also enhances trust, as consent is provided through a digital signature in the eGov app for the processing of personal and business data.

Further, as Beksar’s lending model became more automated and data-driven, friction in the application process decreased. Thus, as Lyazzat and Aldiyar shared, they received their loans the same day and capitalized on commercial opportunities. This further strengthened their confidence in their access to MOST loans through Beksar. Like Aldiyar, several Beksar clients have returned for loan renewals and have remained active users.

Looking ahead

Beksar has recommended hundreds of MSEs to MOST Finance for embedded financing. To date, 40 MSEs have proceeded with the process and received loans. However, many more declined to proceed, even at key moments in their seasonal business cycle where loans could be advantageous. There is still more to learn about improving access to digital credit for MSEs in Kazakhstan.

This initial collaboration between Beksar and MOST Finance, facilitated by Mastercard Strive with support from Accion, is promising. We hope to continue our work together to increase MSEs’ digital and financial inclusion in Kazakhstan and scale our efforts in the next stage, helping MSEs manage cash flow, restock efficiently, and grow sustainably.