With a cumulative loan disbursement of Rs 2,611 crore and loan outstandings of Rs 775 crore, Bandhan has emerged as one of the largest micro finance institutions (MFIs) in India. The MFI, which started operations in 2002 and is registered with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as a non-banking finance company (NBFC), has set a target of disbursing Rs 2,500 crore in 2009-10.
Capital has not been a problem, as Bandhan Financial Services Pvt Ltd enjoys a capital adequacy ratio of nearly 17 per cent, much above the stipulated level of 12 per cent. Ranked second by Forbes magazine in its first ever listing of the world’s top 50 micro-finance institutions (MFIs), Bandhan is now looking to expand its footprint in Afghanistan, Brazil and South Africa, said Chandra Shekhar Ghosh, managing director of the MFI. It currently has a presence in 11 states, covering 51 districts and 438 blocks.
Bandhan offers a basket of financial products, including micro loan products, the micro enterprise programme (or MEP, where larger loans are given to women who are directly involved in an income-generating project, which they want to expand), and health loans (to address the emergency health needs of the poor and their families).
Under the ‘Targeting the Hardcore Poor’(CUF-THP) programme, Bandhan has started lending to the poorest of the poor. The package has been so designed that initially Bandhan will be tracking these people and developing their skills appropriate to the management of a local enterprise. Thereafter follows the process of asset transfer, whereby the poor are given grant support in the form of assets.