Latest news with #Shara
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Business Standard
a day ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Credit score 'negative 1' isn't a crisis: How to improve your ranking
You have landed your first job, opened a salary account and applied for a small personal loan or credit card for the first time. But then you get a message that your application has been rejected, not because of poor financial history, but because you have a credit score of -1. It is a common experience for first-time borrowers in India. Many are unaware that the credit system doesn't just reject those with bad repayment records, it also excludes those with no records at all. What is a credit score? A credit score is a three-digit number, typically ranging from 300 to 900, that reflects your creditworthiness, or how likely you are to repay borrowed money on time. In India, scores are issued by credit bureaus CIBIL, Experian, CRIF High Mark and Equifax based on your loan and credit card usage. A score above 750 is considered strong and leads to easier access to credit at better interest rates. But not having a score, shown as -1, can shut the door before you even step in. 'Your credit score is like your financial reputation,' says Manish Shara, co-founder and chief executive officer of ZET, a credit score-building platform. 'It's not just about borrowing, it can influence everything from your loan eligibility to the cost of financing, and in some cases, even your job or housing prospects.' What does a-1 score really mean? Contrary to what it may seem, a-1 doesn't indicate default, mismanagement, or any wrongdoing. It simply means that there isn't enough information in your credit report for the bureau to assign a score. 'You are what we call credit invisible,' says Shara. 'It's common among gig workers, small business owners, and fresh graduates, people who've never used formal credit products.' According to Shara, over 400 million Indian adults are in this category. 'They're denied credit not because of bad behaviour, but because the system doesn't know them at all.' How to go from -1 to a valid credit score Building a credit score from scratch doesn't require a high salary or extensive financial experience. Here are the tips by Shara on how to begin: Start with a secured credit card: These cards are backed by a fixed deposit, don't need prior credit history, and are ideal for new earners, freelancers or students. Use the card wisely: Make small, regular purchases, groceries, fuel, subscriptions and aim to keep utilisation below 30 per cent of your limit. Always repay on time: Timely full payments are the most powerful input in building your credit profile. Track your score: Monitor your progress every month on platforms like CIBIL, Experian, or Equifax. A visible score usually appears within 3 to 6 months of consistent usage. 'You're not fixing a problem, you're giving the system a reason to recognise you,' Shara says. Final word With financial discipline and a strategy, you can go from being credit invisible to eligible. As Shara puts it: 'Credit access shouldn't depend on where you come from. It should depend on whether you've been given the chance to participate. And building your score is that first step.'
The Sun
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Bear Grylls set to host new BBC show where people resolve feuds in the wild
BEAR Grylls is lined up to host a BBC show getting warring people back together via nature. The adventurer, 51, will lead feuding colleagues, friends and neighbours on an expedition in Wild Reckoning. 1 A source said: ' Bear will be back doing what he does best — showing people that nature is the best healer. 'He's married for 25 years and a dad of three so is well versed in handling such challenges.' Bear's Netflix series Celebrity Bear Hunt was axed after one series. It came after a string of last ditch production meetings where various cost-cutting measures were discussed. But Wild Reckoning is expected next year. He has previously said good communication with wife Shara, also 51, and their three sons is the key to getting along. The BBC said: 'We do not comment on speculation.'
The National
30-01-2025
- Politics
- The National
Al Shara's appointment as Syria's President sparks fears of new iron rule
The appointment of Ahmad Al Shara as President of Syria by his own supporters has sparked fears the country will fail to change into a system fundamentally different from the iron rule he played a main role in toppling. A rebel coalition that overthrew Bashar Al Assad declared Mr Al Shara the President of Syria on Wednesday. The coalition, called the Operations Room, is dominated by Mr Shara's Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS), a former offshoot of Al Qaeda and Al Nusra Front. Walid Al Bunni, a prominent dissident and a former political prisoner who was among the first non-violent figures in Syria to oppose Bashar Al Assad when he came to power in 2000, said the appointment ushers a transformation to a new 'tyranny'. 'Syrians may accept this tyranny for a while, if Julani [Shara's previous nom de guerre] obtains financial support to bring in bread and some basic services,' Mr Al Bunni said. 'But sooner or later, the revolution for a democratic Syria will be renewed,' he said, referring to the 2011 peaceful, pro-democracy uprising, which was crushed by the Assad regime, killing thousands. New powers bestowed on Mr Al Shara by his own troops and auxiliaries gave him the authority to appoint a parliament for an unspecified transitional period and merge all the country's military, political and civil groups into the state. The move represented a consolidation of power for the man who played the main role in toppling the former regime. In December, he led rebel formations from HTS's base in Idlib on an offensive that overthrew Mr Al Assad in Damascus, a decade after Mr Al Shara had become the ruler of a northern fief. Ahmad Aba Zeid, who became a young activist in the rural south of Syria when the revolt broke out in 2011, said the apparent power given to Mr Al Shara to dissolve every group in the country could be 'an arbitrary start to restricting public space'. 'The military groups have a right to disband,' he said. 'But who has the right to dissolve the political and civil groups that had sprung from the revolution?" Mohammad Salloum, a Syrian political satirist who rose to prominence after leading civil disobedience in Idlib at the start of the 2011 uprising, said the appointment mirrors the history of military coups in Syria. These coups were marked by military officers declaring themselves president before overseeing rubber-stamped elections to further legitimise their rule. 'Ahmad Al Shara is still Al Julani,' said Mr Salloum. He has not changed from a leader of the revolution into a statesman, he added. But prominent political commentator Ayman Abdel Nour said Mr Al Shara had to make the move because of the political and legal vacuum in the country. 'He has to legitimise the new state,' Mr Abdel Nour said, a Syrian engineer who had worked on reforming the system with Mr Al Assad, before becoming disillusioned with his rule in the 2000s. 'How else would new laws be enacted, to whom ministers would swear loyalty?' '[Al] Shara's first test will be who he appoints to the legislature,' said Mr Abdel Nour, pointing out that the first parliament after Hafez Al Assad came to power in 1970 comprised regime loyalists only.
