MICROCAPITAL STORY: Indian Microfinance Institution Grama Vidiyal Microfinance (GV) Plans Expansion and Receives USD 3.5 Million from Unitus Equity Fund and Vinod Khosla

Indian non-banking finance company, Grama Vidiyal Microfinance (GV), will look to increase its branches by 115 for its current 100. Currently GV operates in 18 districts of the southern state of Tamil Nadu. By December of 2009, the company expects to open branches in Andhra Pradesh and then in northern India.

GV is also looking to increase its client base to 585,000 by 2009 from its current 250,000. For the year 2008-2009, the company has also set a loan outstanding target of Rs 15 billion (roughly USD 360.3 million) and a credit target of Rs 5 billion (roughly USD 120.1 million).

GV’s expansion will be aided by a capital increase of Rs 147 million (roughly USD 3.5 million). This funding was provided as a private equity investment from the Unitus Equity Fund L.P. and Vinod Khosla. Mr. Khosla is a venture capitalist and the former general partner of Silicon Valley-based venture firm, Kleiner Perkins. With this addition, GV’s capital will total Rs 174 million (approximately USD 4.2 million).

Other investors have included Citibank India. As reported by MicroCapital, Citibank supplied a Rs 45 million (roughly USD 1 million) loan to GV in late 2006.

GV started its operations in 1993. According to the microfinance information clearinghouse the Mix Market, GV had 224,108 borrowers all of which were woman as of March 2008. It also had a gross loan portfolio of USD 28.7 million, total assets of USD 31.3 million, and portfolio at risk > 30 days of 0.20 percent. GV was also ranked fourth in the MIX Global 100 list of top MFIs in December.

by Jennifer Lee

Additional Resources:

Business Standard: “GV to launch 155 branches by Dec 09: Non Banking Finance Company plans expansion”, May 1, 2008.

Grama Vidiyal Microfinance: MixMarket

Bloomberg: Currency Calculator

MicroCapital Story: “Press Release: Microfinance Information eXchange (MIX) Releases Second Annual ‘MIX Global 100: Rankings of Microfinance Institutions'”, January 21, 2008.

MicroCapital Story: “Grama Vidiyal gets USD 1 Million Loan from Citibank India”, December 8, 2006.

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