USAID, DFC & Kotak Bank loan agreement for women & MSMEs in India

USAID (United States Agency for International Development) and USDFC (U.S. International Development Finance Corporation) are sponsoring a US $50 million loan portfolio guarantee to the Kotak Mahindra Bank (KMBL).

Key Facts

• This agreement was signed in order to support increased access of finance for women borrowers as well as micro, small & medium enterprises (MSMEs) in India.
• This agreement will help MSMEs in rebuilding & scale their business that have been impacted by COVID-19.

About the loan programme

• Under the loan program, Kotak Mahindra Bank will provide loans in order to lend it to Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) which are operating in MSME and Microfinance (MFI) space.
• It will help in providing credit to the end borrowers which in turn will promote a sustained and inclusive economic growth.
• It will also play a significant role on economic empowerment of the women because about 50% of the loans will be lent to women-led or women-managed MSMEs, or to those MSMEs that employ a certain percentage of women.
• This programme is expected to benefit more than 30,000 individual women borrowers and 7,500 MSME firms.

Other supporters of programme

• This loan agreement program will be supported by Chennai-based NBFC called Vivriti Capital. It will be providing a US $1 million first loss guarantee.
• An extensive analytical & sourcing support will be provided by debt platform CredAvenue.
• DFC will provide a pari passu guaranty to the bank. This guarantee is financially sponsored by USAID.

About DFC

U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is a development bank of America. It partners with private sector to extend finance solutions to the challenges that developing world are facing today. It invests across sectors such as healthcare, energy, critical infrastructure and technology. It also provides financial support to small businesses and women entrepreneurs with the objective of creating jobs.

Month: Current Affairs - August, 2021