Paalam
Paalam
Paalam
Bringing borrowing and lending into one intuitive platform, designed to simplify financial journeys and make P2P lending clearer and more accessible for first-time users.
Bringing borrowing and lending into one intuitive platform, designed to simplify financial journeys and make P2P lending clearer and more accessible for first-time users.
Bringing borrowing and lending into one intuitive platform, designed to simplify financial journeys and make P2P lending clearer and more accessible for first-time users.
TIMELINE
Aug 2026
SCOPE
Product Design
UX Research
THE PROBLEM
THE PROBLEM
Existing experiences can feel complex and overwhelming, especially for first-time users.
Existing experiences can feel complex and overwhelming, especially for first-time users.
Existing experiences can feel complex and overwhelming, especially for first-time users.
Borrowing and lending have different goals, but both require people to understand financial information, trust the process, and feel confident about the decisions they make.
Borrowers need to understand loan terms, complete applications, monitor funding, and manage repayments.
Lenders need to compare opportunities, evaluate terms, understand fees, and track their money across multiple loans.
For first-time users, these processes can be particularly difficult when the interface does not explain financial information clearly or guide them through the next step.
Borrowing and lending have different goals, but both require people to understand financial information, trust the process, and feel confident about the decisions they make.
Borrowers need to understand loan terms, complete applications, monitor funding, and manage repayments.
Lenders need to compare opportunities, evaluate terms, understand fees, and track their money across multiple loans.
For first-time users, these processes can be particularly difficult when the interface does not explain financial information clearly or guide them through the next step.
THE DESIGN CHALLENGE
THE DESIGN CHALLENGE
How might we make P2P lending easier to understand?
How might we make P2P lending easier to understand?
How might we make P2P lending easier to understand?
Below are screenshots from competitor apps highlighting significant UI and UX design flaws, including unresponsive layouts, poor visual hierarchy, and weak color contrast. These interfaces fail to follow standard design guidelines, resulting in a confusing and frustrating experience for users.
Below are screenshots from competitor apps highlighting significant UI and UX design flaws, including unresponsive layouts, poor visual hierarchy, and weak color contrast. These interfaces fail to follow standard design guidelines, resulting in a confusing and frustrating experience for users.
This challenge shaped three priorities for the product:
Unification: one app with two distinct, connected experiences.
Clarity: financial information presented in understandable language and a clear hierarchy.
Guidance: workflows that help users understand their progress and what to do next.
This challenge shaped three priorities for the product:
Unification: one app with two distinct, connected experiences.
Clarity: financial information presented in understandable language and a clear hierarchy.
Guidance: workflows that help users understand their progress and what to do next.
Product strategy
Product strategy
One app, two experiences
One app, two experiences
One app, two experiences
One of the central decisions was to bring both roles into the same product while allowing each user to see only the navigation and information relevant to their needs.
The shared experience covers account creation, role selection, identity verification, and bank linking. After choosing a role, users enter a dedicated borrower or lender experience.
One of the central decisions was to bring both roles into the same product while allowing each user to see only the navigation and information relevant to their needs.
The shared experience covers account creation, role selection, identity verification, and bank linking. After choosing a role, users enter a dedicated borrower or lender experience.
Why this approach?
Why this approach?
The intent is not to make both journeys identical. It is to make them feel like parts of the same understandable product.
The intent is not to make both journeys identical. It is to make them feel like parts of the same understandable product.
ONBOARDING
ONBOARDING
Setting up an account
Setting up an account
Setting up an account
One simple onboarding experience designed to make account creation easy, clear, and secure for both borrowers and lenders.
One simple onboarding experience designed to make account creation easy, clear, and secure for both borrowers and lenders.
LENDER
LENDER
Designing the lender journey
Designing the lender journey
Designing the lender journey
Designed the lender experience to simplify investment decisions through live loan opportunities, intuitive filters, and transparent loan details. Lenders can review borrower profiles, funding progress, interest rates, tenure, estimated returns, and platform fees before investing.
A dedicated portfolio dashboard helps track active and closed loans, principal lent, repayments received, interest earned, and fees deducted, providing a clear overview of their lending activity in one place.
Designed the lender experience to simplify investment decisions through live loan opportunities, intuitive filters, and transparent loan details. Lenders can review borrower profiles, funding progress, interest rates, tenure, estimated returns, and platform fees before investing.
A dedicated portfolio dashboard helps track active and closed loans, principal lent, repayments received, interest earned, and fees deducted, providing a clear overview of their lending activity in one place.
BORROWER
BORROWER
Applying for Loan
Applying for Loan
Applying for Loan
Designed a guided loan application flow that helps borrowers submit requests with minimal confusion.
Users can select their loan purpose, enter the required amount and tenure, and provide employment, income, and existing loan details.
Clear progress indicators, recommended loan amounts, and a review screen make it easier to complete and verify information before submission.
The flow also supports document uploads and provides a confirmation screen with the request details, keeping borrowers informed about the next steps.
Designed a guided loan application flow that helps borrowers submit requests with minimal confusion.
Users can select their loan purpose, enter the required amount and tenure, and provide employment, income, and existing loan details.
Clear progress indicators, recommended loan amounts, and a review screen make it easier to complete and verify information before submission.
The flow also supports document uploads and provides a confirmation screen with the request details, keeping borrowers informed about the next steps.
BORROWER
BORROWER
Approval, Funding & Repayment Tracking
Approval, Funding & Repayment Tracking
Approval, Funding & Repayment Tracking
A transparent loan-tracking experience that keeps borrowers informed after submitting their application.
Once the request is approved and verified, it goes live on Paalam and becomes available to lenders for funding.
Borrowers can track funding progress in real time, see how much has been funded, and monitor their loan status.
After funding, they can view repayment schedules, upcoming EMIs, payment history, and outstanding balances in one place.
A transparent loan-tracking experience that keeps borrowers informed after submitting their application.
Once the request is approved and verified, it goes live on Paalam and becomes available to lenders for funding.
Borrowers can track funding progress in real time, see how much has been funded, and monitor their loan status.
After funding, they can view repayment schedules, upcoming EMIs, payment history, and outstanding balances in one place.
BORROWER
BORROWER
Borrower Default & Overdue Payment Management
Borrower Default & Overdue Payment Management
Borrower Default & Overdue Payment Management
a clear experience to help borrowers understand missed instalments, track outstanding dues, review partial payments, and choose a repayment amount to address overdue balances.
a clear experience to help borrowers understand missed instalments, track outstanding dues, review partial payments, and choose a repayment amount to address overdue balances.
Ethical Design
Ethical Design
Ethical Design
What I Learned from Existing Lending Apps
What I Learned from Existing Lending Apps
Recognising Manipulative Design
While researching existing lending apps, I noticed practices such as hidden fees, pre-selected add-ons, misleading interest rates, unnecessary permissions, and artificial urgency. I realised that design can influence decisions through what it highlights, hides, or makes difficult to access.
Recognising Manipulative Design
While researching existing lending apps, I noticed practices such as hidden fees, pre-selected add-ons, misleading interest rates, unnecessary permissions, and artificial urgency. I realised that design can influence decisions through what it highlights, hides, or makes difficult to access.
Designing for User Autonomy
This shaped my approach to Paalam: prioritising transparent loan terms, clear fees, understandable repayment schedules, and accessible actions. My goal was to help users make informed financial decisions rather than exploit their uncertainty or financial vulnerability.
Designing for User Autonomy
This shaped my approach to Paalam: prioritising transparent loan terms, clear fees, understandable repayment schedules, and accessible actions. My goal was to help users make informed financial decisions rather than exploit their uncertainty or financial vulnerability.
Key Reflections
Key Reflections
Key Reflections
Simplicity builds financial confidence: Complex financial processes become easier to navigate when information is clear, actions are focused, and terminology is easy to understand.
Simplicity builds financial confidence: Complex financial processes become easier to navigate when information is clear, actions are focused, and terminology is easy to understand.
Good UX should help users make better-informed decisions, not exploit their uncertainty, urgency, or financial vulnerability.
Good UX should help users make better-informed decisions, not exploit their uncertainty, urgency, or financial vulnerability.
Visual design should communicate meaning, consistent layouts and purposeful colour coding help users recognise statuses, understand progress, and identify important actions quickly.
Visual design should communicate meaning, consistent layouts and purposeful colour coding help users recognise statuses, understand progress, and identify important actions quickly.
HAVE MORE QUESTIONS?
CONTACT
Let's build something meaningful together. 🎈
Whether it's a full-time opportunity, contractual, freelance project, or just an interesting idea, I'd love to hear from you.
HAVE MORE QUESTIONS?
CONTACT
Let’s build something meaningful together. 🎈
Whether it’s a full-time opportunity, contractual, freelance project, or just an interesting idea, I’d love to hear from you.
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