Chennai-headquartered Non-Bank Finance Company-Microfinance institution (NBFC-MFI), Asirvad Microfinance Limited, has securitised (by direct assignment) microfinance loans worth Rs 262 crore in a deal with a leading public sector bank in India.
The announcement comes at a time when the microfinance sector in India has faced higher stress from lockdowns imposed after the onset of the second wave of the pandemic.
Earlier in May 2021, the company has raised $15 million loan from WorldBusiness Capital Inc. based in Hartford, Connecticut (USA).
Asirvad Microfinance MD Raja Vaidyanathan said, “This deal, following closely on the heels of an ECB transaction with the US based WorldBusiness Capital, reaffirms the confidence that leading lending institutions have in India’s microfinance sector and its prospects for growth.”
Proceeds from the loan availed will enable Asirvad to expand its business of providing small loans to low-income women business owners in rural areas to start and expand their income-generating business.
Acquired by Manappuram Finance Ltd. in 2015, Asirvad is the fourth largest MFI in India today. Providing loans to approximately 2.6 million women borrowers, Asirvad’s 7,000 employees service clients at more than 1,000 branches in 23 states in India.
