The loan portfolio of the microfinance industry rose 21% year-on-year(y-o-y) to Rs 3.9 trillion as on December 31, the latest report from self-regulatory organisation Sa-Dhan showed.The average ticket size of the microfinance loans rose 17% y-o-y to
Rs 48,160 as on December 31. The total disbursement of microfinance lenders rose 19% y-o-y to Rs 96,754 crore in the December quarter.
The number of loan accounts serviced by micro lenders rose 9% y-o-y to 140.8 million as on December 31. The microfinance disbursements of diversified NBFCs rose 32% y-o-y in the December quarter, the highest among players. The disbursement of banks rose 27% y-o-y, NBFC-MFIs rose 15%, small finance banks rose 4%, even as disbursement by non-profit MFIs fell 17%.Microfinance-focussed non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) held a lion’s share in the segment with a 40% market share.
The market share of banks was at 32%, small finance banks (SFBs) at 18%, diversified non-banking financial companies at 11%, and non-profit microfinance institutions at 0.18%.Currently, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and West Bengal account for 57% of the portfolio of the microfinance industry.
Bihar’s loan portfolio stands at Rs 58,706 crore as on December 31.The number of districts with a portfolio of more than Rs 2,000 crore rose to 30 districts as of December 2023 from 14 districts a year ago. A majority of these districts are in Bihar.The portfolio at risk for loans overdue by more than 30 days improved to 2.24% as on December 31 from 3.43% a year ago. Similarly, the portfolio at risk for loans overdue by more than 60 days improved to 1.63% as on December 31 from 2.60% a year ago.
“Microfinance sector is on a boom with overall improved performance in every parameter. This growth story has been continuing for last 2 quarter and expected to continue a few more years,” Jiji Mammen, executive director and chief executive officer, Sa-Dhan said, adding that there is a need to have expansion of microfinance to other geographies which are not fully served at present.