When Compliance Becomes a Nightmare: Our 10-Year Struggle with a Bank
In business, you prepare for market risks, competitor pressure, pricing wars… but you never imagine a decade-long delay from your own AD bank could paralyze your entire export operations.
We run a textile export company from Indore, selling Indian-made cotton products to the world. In 2015, we submitted documents to RBL Bank, Indore for BRC/FIRC issuance—standard export compliance, right?
But our nightmare began when we were told in 2017: “Sir, documents misplaced.”
We resubmitted everything.
Since then, we've visited the bank more than 15 times.
Dozens of follow-ups. Emails. Calls. Courier receipts.
Even escalations to RBI and senior bank officers.
Yet—no resolution.
No BRC. No FIRC. No official letter of acknowledgment.
Nothing.
💰 As a result, our GST refund + DBK claims worth ₹37+ lakhs are still pending.
📦 Our export shipments can’t be registered on ICEGATE.
📉 We had to halt some of our operations.
🙏 Our team suffered.
And worst—our trust was broken.
Even after receiving a foreign remittance , with all charges paid and compliance fulfilled, the paperwork sits in limbo.
We’re not seeking sympathy. We’re seeking accountability.
We believed in the system. We followed the process.
But when process itself becomes a barrier—it’s time to ask:
Who is answerable for such losses?
How long can small businesses survive systemic apathy?
To anyone reading this—if you’re building something against all odds and facing similar hurdles: we hear you.
Part 2: If a Startup Fails, Everyone Points Fingers… But When It Fights, Who Stands With It?
When a startup collapses, the world is quick to say:
"Bad management"
"Poor financial planning"
"They couldn't scale"
But when that same startup knocks on doors for support, here’s what happens:
🏦 Banks: “Do you have 100% collateral?”
💰 NBFCs: “We’ll lend—but at a high interest rate.”
📉 FinTechs: “We'll need both: sky-high ROI & NCD coverage.”
Everyone wants the upside.
Nobody shares the risk.
And so, founders like us… we carry it all.
We started this business with one strength: sales.
But soon, we were forced to wear every single hat:
• Logistics manager
• Finance controller
• Procurement head
• HR recruiter
• Legal reviewer
• Tax compliance officer
• Product developer
• Quality inspector
• Brand strategist
• IT support
• Motivation coach
• Firefighter of ad-hoc chaos
And still, the list grows.
Because for a founder, the “other work” never ends.
All of this comes at a very high cost—financial, mental, emotional.
We aren't asking for shortcuts or favors. Just a system that works, and institutions that do what they promise.
We never imagined that a simple BRC/FIRC certificate—pending for 10 YEARS—would cost us so much.
Yet, we’re still here. Still fighting.
Because the spirit of entrepreneurship is not built on ease, but on endurance.
To every founder out there who’s juggling 20 roles at once, trying to survive the system instead of being empowered by it—you’re not alone.
#StartupIndia #EntrepreneurLife #FounderReality #SMEVoices #EaseOfDoingBusiness #SystemicChallenges #Bootstrapped #MahaveerCotton #BuildingInIndia #VoiceOfFounders #RealTalk
