Nokia, a Finnish telecommunications company, is partnering with microfinance institutions (MFIs) to allow rural residents in the Indian states of Punjab and Haryana to use microloans to buy mobile phones. The company has already formed partnerships with several microfinance MFIs in the area, including SKS Microfinance, which is based in Hyderabad; Ujjivan, which maintains offices in Bangalore, Delhi, Kolkata and Pune; and Madura Microfinance, headquartered in Adyar. The payment scheme for the use each mobile phone will be as low as INR 100 (USD 2.14) per week.
According to the MIX Market, the microfinance information clearinghouse, as of March 31, 2009, SKS Microfinance had USD 596 million in total assets with 3.5 million active borrowers, and a return on assets of 3.68 percent and return on equity of 18.72 percent. As of March 2010, Ujjivan reported INR 9.3 billion in total loans disbursed, INR 3.7 billion in outstanding loans and approximately 621,000 customers. Financial information is unavailable for Madura Microfinance.
By Conner Brannen, Research Assistant
About SKS Microfinance:
SKS Microfinance is a microfinance institution (MFI), launched in 1998, that caters to women clients in India. In 2005, it transformed into a for-profit non-banking financial company (NBFC). As of September 2009, SKS had 1,676 branches, compared with 771 branches in March 2008. According to the MIX Market, the microfinance information clearinghouse, its total assets, as of March 31, 2009, were USD 596 million with 3.5 million active borrowers, and it reported return on assets of 3.68 percent and return on equity of 18.72 percent. SKS Microfinance offers products including: income generating loans, mid-term loans, individual loans, loan cover insurance and health insurance. Equity investors include Sequoia Capital, Vinod Khosla, Small Industries Development Bank of India, Bajaj Allianz, Yatish Trading, Kismet Capital, Sandstone Capital, Silicon Valley Bank and Unitus.
About Ujjivan:
Ujjivan’s goal is to provide a wide range of services, including financial services, to poor working women in urban and semi-urban areas of India. Ujjivan maintains offices in Bangalore, Delhi, Kolkata and Pune. As of March 2010, Ujjivan reported INR 9.3 billion in total loans disbursed, INR 3.7 billion in outstanding loans and approximately 621,000 customers.
About Madura Microfinance:
Established in 2005, Madura Microfinance is a non-banking finance company (NBFC) in India that aims to provide microfinance “coupled with knowledge and information services that raise human capacity and organizational capability and [to] create open access to markets resulting in more productive loans.” Madura Microfinance is headquartered in Adyar, India. Financial information is unavailable for Madura Microfinance.
Sources and Additional Resources:
Business Standard: “Nokia’s Microfinancing Schemes,” July 2, 2010: http://www.business-standard.com/india/storypage.php?autono=400089
MicroCapital Universe Profile: SKS Microfinance: https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=SKS+Microfinance
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Nokia and SKS Microfinance to Introduce New Mobile Phone Features for Rural Poor, August 24, 2009: https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-story-nokia-and-sks-microfinance-to-introduce-new-mobile-phone-features-for-rural-poor/
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Indian SKS Microfinance Teams Up with Mobile Phone Vendors Nokia and Bharti Airtel to Provide Service for Rural Customers, January 27, 2009: https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-story-indian-sks-microfinance-teams-up-with-mobile-phone-vendors-nokia-and-bharti-airtel-to-provide-service-for-rural-customers/
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