CreditAccess Grameen Secures Up To $200 Mln Loan Facility

CreditAccess Grameen Ltd. said it signed a syndicated social loan facility of up to $200 million, qualifying as external commercial borrowing (ECB) under the automatic route of India’s central bank.

The company received $160 million in commitments to date, along with a greenshoe option to raise an additional $40 million, exercisable over 120 days from the date of signing of the facility agreement, India’s largest microfinance institution said in a stock exchange announcement.

The $160 million commitments have been received from 12 banks, including a contribution of 25% from Taiwanese banks, 28% from the Middle Eastern banks along with the lead arranger, and the rest from foreign branches of Indian banks, it added.

The Bengaluru-based non-bank lender, which focuses on providing micro-loans to women customers predominantly in rural areas across India, said it has currently drawn $100 million, and the remaining commitments will be drawn over the coming months.

CreditAccess Grameen said this marks the first social ECB loan in the Indian microfinance industry and the fourth from India. The social loan will abide by the company’s social loan framework, which aligns with the Social Loan Principles 2023, stipulating the use of proceeds, social development goals and governance, according to the Loan Market Association, it noted.

The company said Standard Chartered Bank is the social loan coordinator for the transaction along with being the sole mandated lead arranger and sole book runner.

“Being the largest NBFC-MFI, the strength and scalability of the liability profile is paramount in our pursuit of consciously growing our loan portfolio at 20%-25% CAGR to cross the 50,000 crore rupees mark in the coming four to five years,” CreditAccess Grameen Chief Financial Officer Balakrishna Kamath said.

The company, promoted by CreditAccess India B.V., is now operating in 352 districts in 14 states and one union territory in India through 1,786 branches, according to the statement.

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