Microloans: Early delinquencies jump to 15.7% in September, says CRIF

West Bengal, which retained its position as the top microfinance market as of September, had an early delinquency rate of 31.7 per cent

As the six-month moratorium on EMI payments came to an end in August last year, early delinquencies (30 days late) in microloans rose sharply to 15.7 per cent in September, according to CRIF High Mark, an RBI-approved credit bureau. This was an increase from 2.35 per cent at March-end, and 1.3 per cent at the end of September 2019. 

Businesses began to recover after the government relaxed lockdown guidelines in a graded way. Yet, microfinance borrowers, who were impacted severely by the lockdown, were not able to repay their dues, leading to phenomenally high early delinquencies.

West Bengal, which retained its position