MFIs, banks need to revisit micro-loan pricing: CreditAccess Grameen MD

Udaya Kumar Hebbar comes across as a contrarian when he says that the industry has learnt to navigate lockdowns

The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic has the potential to trip the financial sector all over again. For microfinance institutions (MFIs) that cater to the bottom of the pyramid, it is particularly challenging, given their dependence for funding on banks, even as they compete with them. UDAYA KUMAR HEBBAR, managing director of CreditAccess Grameen, comes across as a contrarian when he says that the industry has learnt to navigate lockdowns. He spoke to Raghu Mohan. Edited excerpts:
 
How is the second phase of the pandemic going to affect your collections?
 
In the first phase of the lockdown