MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Swarna Pragati Housing Microfinance, Accion Invest $4.5m in Saija Finance of India

Swarna Pragati Housing Microfinance Limited, an Indian housing finance company, and Accion, a US-based nonprofit, reportedly have invested USD 4.5 million in Saija Finance, an Indian microfinance institution (MFI).

The investment is the second round of funding for Saija, following a USD 500,000 investment in 2009 by the Accion Gateway Fund, a holding of Accion that invests in MFIs. Saija will use the funds to expand its branch network and customer outreach. Neither the breakdown of the investment between the two investors nor the size of the stakes acquired has been released.

Founded in 1961, Accion is a private, US-based nonprofit organization with the mission of alleviating poverty by providing financial products such as microenterprise loans and business training. As of 2012, Accion’s network serves 4.2 million active clients and fund assets of USD 13 million. Founded in 2008, Saija reported total assets of USD 3 million as of 2011. Financial information on Pragati is not available.

By Brett Cohen, Research Associate

About Saija Finance
Founded in April 2008, Saija aims to offer financial services to poor people in the Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Delhi, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and parts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. As of 2009, Saija reported total assets of USD 3 million, gross loan portfolio of USD 2.1 million, ROA of -7.03 percent and ROE of -23.01 percent.

About Accion
Accion is a private, US-based nonprofit organization with the mission of alleviating poverty by providing financial products such as microenterprise loans and business training. Accion was founded in 1961 and issued its first microloan in 1973 in Brazil. Accion’s partner microfinance institutions provide loans to men and women entrepreneurs in  23 countries in Latin America, Asia, Africa and the United States. As of 2012, Accion’s network serves 4.2 million active clients and fund assets of USD 13 million.

About Accion Gateway Fund
Controlled by US-based nonprofit Accion, the Accion Gateway Fund aims to generate long-term capital gains and current income through investments in equity, quasi-equity and medium-term debt securities issued by microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Latin America, the Caribbean and India. As of 2012, Accion Gateway Fund reported fund assets of USD 5.1 million including shares in MFIs in Bolivia, Columbia, El Salvador, Haiti, India, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Venezuela.

About Swarna Pragati Housing Microfinance Limited
Swarna Pragati Housing Microfinance Limited is an Indian housing finance company. Based in New Delhi, Swarna Pragati is headed by A Ramesh Kumar, a previous chairman of the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development’s (NABARD’s) Committee on Rural Habitat. Swarna Pragati does not report financial data on its website or via standard outlets such as the US-based nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange. Swarna Pragati’s loans generally range from USD 710 to USD 1,420, with an average term of 36 to 48 months.

Sources and Additional Resources

DealCurry.com story, “ACCION, Pragati India Invests $4.5Mn In Saija Finance”
http://www.dealcurry.com/20120614-ACCION-Pragati-India-Invests-4-5Mn-In-

MicroCapital.org story, February 18, 2012: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC), ACCION Support Swadhaar in Expanding Microfinance for Women in Urban India”
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-international-finance-cor

MicroCapital.org story, March 21, 2011:”MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Swarna Pragati Housing Microfinance Launches Micro-Mortgage Product in Maharashtra, India”
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-swarna-pragati-housing-mi

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Accion
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Acc

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Accion Gateway Fund
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=ACC

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Saija Finance
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Sai

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Swarna Pragati Housing Finance Limited
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Swa

Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at: https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/

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