Standard Chartered (StanChart) Bank, India’s largest international bank, will increase its involvement in microfinance in the coming year, according to CEO-India of StanChart Bank Neeraj Swaroop. The bank plans to boost its investment in the sector and the number of its partnerships with microfinance institutions (MFIs). “The aim is to increase our exposure from current level of close to Rs 100 crore (USD 25.36 million) to about Rs 500 crore (USD 126.8 million) by December 2008,” Mr. Swaroop said.
Standard Chartered Bank is part of Standard Chartered Group Plc, a London-based international bank that operates in over 50 countries worldwide. In 2006, StanChart Group had USD 266 billion in total assets, USD 249 billion in total liabilities and USD 17 billion in total equity. StanChart Group has developed 35 alliances with MFIs across Asia and Africa. The group has also made a Clinton Global Initiative pledge to channel USD 500 million over five years to MFIs in Africa and Asia.
The Board of StanChart Group recently met in New Delhi. This is the fifth time in the last seven years that the board has met in India. The group looked at agricultural finance and discussed ways to aid the Indian farming community.
Chairman of Standard Chartered Group Plc, E. Mervyn Davies, stated that StanChart Bank intends to transform itself into a pan-Indian bank over the next 10 to 20 years. As of March 2005, India Standard Chartered Bank had USD 9.46 billion (pg 2) in total assets and USD 9.46 billion in total capital and liabilities. The bank currently has 83 branches in 33 cities and would like to increase this reach to 100 cities. Mr. Davies noted, however, that branch licensing restrictions have been a major obstacle for StanChart. “We would like to open more branches in India, especially in the rural areas, but the cap on the number of branches a foreign bank can open is putting a limitation on our growth.” He added that all international banks were experiencing similar issues with government regulations. “India is hugely important to the future of Standard Chartered,” Mr. Davies said. The group derives over 90 percent of its profits from Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Additional Resources:
MoneyControl.com: “StanChart to ramp up microfinance activities.”
StanChart Bank: Annual Report 2004-2005: Balance Sheet (pg 2)
StanChart Group: About Us
StanChart Group: Annual Report & Accounts 2006: Consolidated Balance Sheet
StanChart Group: Annual Report & Accounts 2006: Business Review – Sustainability
Microfinance Gateway: “Standard Chartered Bank Commits US$500Mln Towards Microfinance in Asia & Africa.”
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