182M€
Wallet
587 766
Number of beneficiaries
97,6%
Women beneficiaries
56,5%
Urban beneficiaries
India
Financial services
Funding granted
Loan of €3M*
(local currency equivalent)
Partner of the Foundation
since 2021
*Outstanding at grant value
Context :
India is the world's fourth-largest agricultural producer. The primary sector employs approximately 47,130 million workers and accounts for nearly 18,000 million of GDP. The population is still rural, accounting for over 70,000. However, extreme weather events in recent years have been a major factor in the decline in farmers' incomes.
The company:
Pahal began operations as an MFI in 2014. Pahal strives to provide quality services to its clients by offering a range of financial and non-financial products and services to low-income households and individuals to improve their quality of life. Pahal constantly strives to identify the changing needs of its existing and potential clients and develops the most suitable products and services accordingly.
Impact :
Pahal has impacted the lives of millions of poor families by providing them with credit for income-generating activities and helping them become economically self-reliant and bring about qualitative changes in their standard of living and status in society.
The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation works for financial inclusion in India
©Crédit Agricole/Getty
With 190 million unbanked adults, India has the second-largest unbanked population in the world after China (World Bank). The microfinance sector has become a key tool in combating financial exclusion in the country by providing financial and non-financial services to people excluded from the banking system. The sector has shown spectacular growth, reaching 60 million borrowers with a total portfolio of €27 billion.
To support the development of microfinance in India, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation has granted a €3 million loan over three years to Pahal Financial Services Private Limited, a microfinance institution located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Since its inception in 2011, Pahal has served nearly 750,000 clients, mostly women entrepreneurs (98%), through 167 branches with total assets under management of €81 million. Today, Pahal is one of the fastest-growing microfinance institutions in India, thanks to its innovative and diversified product offering for low-income individuals.
“With this partnership, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation is strengthening its work to promote financial inclusion and women’s empowerment in India. This financing is our first direct operation in India, using the external commercial borrowing facility recently opened by the Reserve Bank of India. This microfinance institution has demonstrated great resilience on numerous occasions, and we are confident that Pahal, its clients, and the entire sector will recover quickly from the crisis,” said Caroline Brandt, Investment Officer at the Foundation.
“The loan from the Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation is a validation of Pahal’s business model and demonstrates the resilience of the microfinance sector in India,” said Kartik Mehta, Co-founder and Managing Director. “At Pahal, we are committed to being part of the financial inclusion agenda for the most vulnerable in our society. This money will be used to provide loans to Pahal’s women beneficiaries,” added Purvi Bhavsar, Co-founder and Managing Director.
The Foundation's financial support comes as the microfinance sector emerges from the Covid-19 crisis. Following the lifting of the lockdown, anticipated microcredit applications are expected to trigger a rapid recovery in the sector. Pahal, in partnership with the Foundation, will support its borrowers to help them restart their activities.