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Why excitement in Manappuram stock post lifting of microfinance ban faded | Stock Market News  Mint
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Updated on: Dec 26th, 2024
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4 min read
The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) need funding to establish and grow. The Government of India has taken many steps and launched many schemes to provide credit to MSMEs. MSMEs contribute significantly to our country for building a strong economy. One of the key aspects of MSMEs is access to credit. MSMEs require credit or funding to establish the business or the expansion of the business. 
To provide credit facilities for the MSMEs, the Government of India has come up with many loan schemes, and even the banking sector and financial institutions grant loans to them. Some of the well recognised MSME loan schemes of 2023, popular due to the business getting disrupted due to COVID-19, are discussed below.

The Hon’ble Prime Minister launched the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) scheme on 8th April 2015. This scheme provides loans up to 10 lakh to non-corporate and non-farm small or micro-enterprises. These loans are classified as MUDRA (Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency Limited) loans under PMMY.
MUDRA is a non-banking financial company (NBFC) which supports the development of MSMEs. MUDRA provides support by refinancing to banks, microfinance institutions (MFIs) and NBFC for lending loans to micro units having a loan requirement of up to 10 lakhs. Under this scheme, the loans are provided by Commercial Banks, Small Finance Banks, MFIs and NBFCs. The borrowers can approach any of these lending institutions or apply for loans online through the UdyamiMitra portal.
Under the scheme of PMMY, there are three different schemes namely ‘Shishu’, ‘Kishore’ and ‘Tarun’ which signify the stage of development or growth and the funding need of the beneficiary micro-units or entrepreneurs and it also provides a reference point for the next phase of graduation or growth.
Nature of Assistance – ‘Shishu’ offers loans up to Rs.50,000. ‘Kishor’ provides loans above Rs.50,000 up to Rs.5 lakhs. ‘Tarun’ provides loans above Rs.5 lakhs up to Rs. 10 lakhs to micro-units.
The Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) is a merger of two schemes of Prime Minister’s Rojgar Yojna (PMRY) and Rural Employment Generation Programme (REGP). This scheme focuses on generating self-employment opportunities to the unemployed youth and traditional artisans through micro-enterprise establishments in the non-farm sector. It is executed by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) which functions as the nodal agency for this scheme at the national level.
At the state level, this scheme is implemented through the State KVIC Directorates, District Industries Centres (DICs), State Khadi and Village Industries Boards (KVIBs), and banks. Under this scheme, the KVIC routes government subsidy through designated banks for eventual disbursal to the entrepreneurs or beneficiaries directly into their bank accounts.
Eligibility – Any individual/s who is/are above 18 years of age is/are eligible. The individual/s should be at least VIII standard pass for the projects, in the manufacturing sector which cost above Rs.10 lakh and in the business or service sector which cost above Rs. 5 lakh. 
Under this scheme, only the new projects are considered for sanction. Self Help Groups, Institutions registered under Societies Registration Act, 1860, Production-based Co-operative Societies, and Charitable Trusts are also eligible.
Any unit/s existing under PMRY, REGP or any other scheme of Government of India or State Government are not eligible. Even the units that have already availed Government Subsidy under any other scheme of Government of India or State Government are not eligible.
Nature of Assistance – The maximum cost of the project or unit admissible in the manufacturing sector is Rs.25 lakhs and in the business or service sector is Rs.10 lakhs for assistance under this scheme.
The beneficiary’s rate of the subsidiary for the general category is 15% in urban areas and 25% in rural areas. The beneficiary’s rate of the subsidiary for the special category is 25% in urban areas and 35% in rural areas.
Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) together established the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE). CGTMSE is established in order to implement a credit guarantee scheme for MSMEs.
The Government of India and SIDBI contribute to the corpus of this scheme. The whole idea behind this trust is providing financial assistance to the small and medium industries without any third-party guarantee or collateral. The guarantee coverage under this scheme ranges from 85% for Micro Enterprise (up to Rs 5 lakh), 75% for others and 50% for retail activity.
Eligibility – Both existing and new enterprises are eligible under the scheme. The candidates meeting the eligibility criteria may approach banks or financial institutions and select Regional Rural Banks which are eligible for getting assistance under this scheme.
Nature of Assistance – The guarantee cover available under the scheme is to the extent of 50%/75%/ 80% or 85% of the sanctioned amount of the credit facility. For micro-enterprises up to 5 lakhs, the extent of guarantee cover is 85%.
The extent of guarantee cover is 50% of the sanctioned amount of the credit facility for credit from 10 lakhs to 100 lakhs per MSME borrower for retail trade activity. In case of default, the trust settles the claim up to 75% of the amount in default of the credit facility, which is extended by the lending institution for credit facilities up to 200 lakh.
The Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme (CLCSS) renders a subsidy for technology upgradation to the MSMEs. This scheme provides 15% subsidy for additional investment up to Rs.1 crore for technology upgradation by MSMEs. Technology upgradation means induction of state-of-the-art or near state-of-the-art technology. 
The candidates meeting the eligibility criteria may approach 12 nodal banks or agencies to avail the subsidy under this scheme. These 12 nodal banks or agencies are SIDBI, NABARD, SBI, BoB, PNB, BOI, SBBJ, TIIC, Andhra Bank, Corporation Bank, Canara Bank and Indian Bank.
Eligibility – Any MSME unit is eligible under this scheme. But the units replacing existing equipment or technology with the same equipment or technology will not qualify for a subsidy under this scheme. Similarly, the units upgrading with used machinery would not be eligible under this scheme.
Nature of Assistance – This scheme aims at facilitating technology upgradation by providing 15% upfront capital subsidy to MSMEs on institutional finance availed by them. This subsidy is provided to MSMEs for induction of well established and improved technologies in specified sub-sectors or products approved under the scheme.
This scheme provides an upfront subsidy of 15% on institutional credit up to Rs.1 crore (i.e. a subsidy cap of Rs.15 lakh) for identified sectors/subsectors/ technologies.
MSMEs face a severe shortage of equity. Venture Capital (VC) or Private Equity (PE) firms offer early-stage funding, but very few of them provide growth-stage funding. To encourage MSMEs to grow and get listed on stock exchanges, the Fund of Funds provides equity funding for MSMEs who have growth potential and viability.
This scheme will be able to intermediate different types of funds into underserved MSMEs and address the growing needs of viable and high growth MSMEs with the intervention of the government.
Eligibility – All MSMEs are eligible. MSMEs can apply through Investor Funds onboarded and registered with the proposed Fund of Funds.
Nature of Assistance – The Government of India will support VC or PE firms in investing in commercially viable MSMEs for meeting their growth requirements. The proposed fund of funds will encourage private sector investments in the MSME with leverage of Rs.50,000 crore.
Credit Guarantee Scheme for Subordinate Debt (CGSSD) seeks to extend support to the promoters of the operational MSMEs which are stressed and have become NPA as on 30th April 2020. The promoters, in turn, will infuse this amount in the MSME unit as equity and thereby increase the liquidity and maintain the debt-equity ratio.
Subordinate debt will be of considerable help to sustain and revive the MSMEs which have become NPA or are on the brink to become NPA. The promoters of the MSMEs will be given credit equal to 15% of their stake (equity plus debt) or Rs.75 lakh whichever is lower.
Eligibility – The operational MSMEs which are NPA or are stressed will be eligible. The promoters of MSME who meet the eligibility criteria can apply for this scheme. They can approach scheduled commercial banks to avail benefit under the scheme.
Nature of Assistance – The scheme provides 90% guarantee for the sub-debt, and the remaining 10% will be from the concerned promoters. The maximum tenure for repayment is ten years. There is a moratorium of 7 years on payment of the principal.
The SIDBI Make In India Loan For Enterprises (SMILE) is intended to take forward the Government of India’s ‘Make in India’ campaign and help MSMEs take part in this campaign. This scheme provides a soft loan in the nature of quasi-equity. It also provides term loans on relatively soft terms to MSMEs to meet the required debt-equity ratio for their establishment. It also provides loans to the existing MSMEs to pursue opportunities for their growth.
Eligibility – New enterprises in the manufacturing and the services sector is covered under this scheme. The existing enterprises undertaking expansion for taking advantage of the new emerging opportunities are eligible under this scheme. This scheme will also cover the existing enterprises undertaking expansion for undertaking modernisation, technology upgradation or other projects for growing their business. Under this scheme, the emphasis is given to financing smaller enterprises within MSME.
Nature of Assistance – The minimum loan size is Rs.10 lakh for equipment and finance. The minimum loan size for others is Rs.25 lakh. The repayment period is up to 10 years, including moratorium of up to 36 months.
The Government of India recently announced to offer MSME Business Loan for Startups in 59 Minutes. A new web portal was launched to provide loans to MSMEs in 59 Minutes. The processing of the loans for MSMEs on this online portal is fully automated. This portal will process the loans within one hour. After the loan is approved through this portal, the loan is disbursed to the applicant of the loan in the next seven or eight working days.
This scheme aims at automation and digitisation of various processes of business loans offered, which includes the term loans, working capital loans and mudra loans.
Eligibility – Any existing business or MSMEs which wants to apply for a business loan (term loan/ working capital loan) in-principle approval is eligible. The business should be IT compliant and must have a six months Bank Statement Facility. 
Both GST registered as well as not-registered businesses are eligible. If any business not registered with GST or has not filed ITR or does not have a bank statement applies for mudra loan, then the business can provide the related details by self-declaring the same.
The income or revenue, repayment capacity, existing credit facility and any other factors as set by lenders determine the eligibility criteria of the borrowers. The portal is integrated with CGTMSE to check eligibility of borrowers.
Nature of Assistance -The business loan in-principle approvals are provided from Rs.1 lakh to Rs.5 crores. The loans are provided with or without collateral. The rate of interest starts from 8.5% onwards. The mudra loan in-principle approvals are provided from Rs.10,000 to Rs.10 lakh.
Banks and other lending institutions offer term loans and working capital loans to MSMEs. The working capital loans are offered to MSMEs by banks to fulfil their daily cash requirements. The term loans are offered to MSMEs for capital expansion, capital expenditure or buying fixed assets.
Apart from term loans and working capital loans, the banks or financial institutions have different loan schemes which they offer to MSMEs. The MSME loan schemes offered by different banks or financial institutions have different terms and conditions applicable.
Each loan scheme offered by the banks/financial institutions has different interest rates. The interest rates are based on various factors such as desired loan amount, repayment tenure, nature and tenure of business, creditworthiness and repayment capability.
Many MSME loans are offered without collateral by banks. Some of the banks which offer different loans schemes are State Bank of India, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank etc. NBFCs, Small Finance Banks (SFBs), Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) and Micro Finance Institutions are some of the financial institutions that offer loans to MSMEs.
Disclaimer: The materials provided herein are solely for information purposes. No attorney-client relationship is created when you access or use the site or the materials. The information presented on this site does not constitute legal or professional advice and should not be relied upon for such purposes or used as a substitute for legal advice from an attorney licensed in your state.
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RBI eases curbs on NBFCs as compliance improves after supervisory actions  Business Standard
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The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday removed lending restrictions it had imposed on two non-banking financial companies, Asirvad Micro Finance Limited and DMI Finance Private Limited. 
The RBI’s decision means both entities can now resume sanctioning and disbursing loans with immediate effect.
The restrictions were originally placed on October 17, 2024, and took effect after the close of business on October 21, 2024. They prevented the two NBFCs from issuing new loans due to concerns about non-compliance with regulatory guidelines and what the central bank described as “usurious pricing.”
Asirvad Micro Finance, a microfinance institution based in Chennai, and DMI Finance, an investment and credit company headquartered in New Delhi, responded by taking remedial actions. They revamped their processes, systems and loan-pricing mechanisms in an effort to ensure full adherence to the RBI’s regulations.
After reviewing the two companies’ compliance reports and revised frameworks, the RBI found them in line with prescribed guidelines.
It noted the firms’ commitment to maintaining fairness in loan pricing and overall compliance going forward, leading the central bank to lift the restrictions. The RBI had earlier lifted similar sanctions on two other NBFCs, Navi Finserv and Arohan Financial Services.

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Many people in the cities may be getting scam calls on WhatsApp and otherwise but 40,000 poor women in rural Chhattisgarh have become easy meat for loan sharks who have cheated them of their money and credit after raising loans and vanishing. Till now, three women and three agents have committed suicide.
By Neeraj Mishra
Micro-finance schemes, Jan Dhan Yojana and women’s Self-Help Groups (SHG) may have been the toast of many presentations on development. But they have introduced rural women to the new world of debt trap and suicides.
More than 40,000 women and a Rs 350-crore loan scam involving 45 banking institutions in Chhattisgarh has led several women and agents to suicide.
Chhattisgarh has produced the latest playbook on how small loans taken by a large number of debtors can enrich a crooked few. Banks and micro-finance companies have penetrated far-flung villages of Chhattisgarh taking advantage of several dozen government schemes which have opened opportunities for loans to the rural poor.  While the Central government proclaims loudly its successful schemes like Jan Dhan, National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) and Swayamsidha, it has not been able to safeguard beneficiaries from sharks. Handing out small loans to the uninitiated and uneducated can be a dangerously lucrative for those waiting to twist the system.
More than 40,000 women in Korba, Balod, Gariaband, Janjgir, Raigarh  and Dhamtari districts of Chhattisgarh have been duped by smart operators who first withdrew small amounts as loans in their names and then vanished with the money. As the micro-finance companies and banks now pressure the debtors, at least three women and three agents have committed suicide. Several families have escaped from their villages to avoid the constant badgering. And all for loan amounts ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 3.5 lakh. The police has so far been unable to pinpoint or arrest the perpetrators though the contours of the crime have been unravelled.
At least two companies have been named: Flora Max of Korba and Saptarishi of Balod. These companies would send out their agents to contact women in rural areas and goad them to form SHGs and Joint Liability Groups (JLG). Then these agents would approach the banks to apply for loans in the name of these women and their SHGs. The women would be told the loan money is being invested in these big companies and they have nothing to fear as the instalments would be paid by the company. Women would also get between 10 and 25 per cent of the loan amount upfront which would buy their peace and settle their doubts.
Even a cursory glance at the plan will reveal the bank managers would be complicit but may not be the case always. Some instalments were paid by the company through their agents to keep up appearances and entice more women. A typical loan application would unfold like this: The agent would take the leader of the SHG to the bank with all relevant papers and make an application under any of the NRLM schemes. The woman would, as the leader of her SHG, get some cash but would be entirely under the impression that she or her group would not be under any liability even though she would sign all the loan papers. The scam ran so smoothly and more than 40,000 women fell prey to the smooth talk of the agents because they are usually people from their area, talk their language and know their families.
Ten nationalised banks and 35 micro-finance institutions have been named by Korba Police as being involved in the elaborate scam which netted more than Rs 350 crore for the perpetrators. But it could not have been possible without the connivance of fund managers and even government officials responsible for keeping a tab on SHGs and NGOs in their districts. The SHGs and NGOs are audited by the district CEO and the Collector and it is impossible to accept that they would not have been able to see through such a plain plan.
The other side of the story is horrific. The SHGs are large group of women but JLGs can be very small and usually involves two or three women in whose name loans were withdrawn. This would usually be for some small business or extension of an existing one. Both fake of course. The JLG women were convinced that the money is free government grant like Mahtari and Bahin Yojana and need not be returned and the agent would take care if anything arose. Here the complicity of fund managers is obvious as they did everything knowingly. Some agents themselves are now under pressure by villagers to return the money or face violence, while bank managers can escape responsibility because the banks have in their possession signed loan papers by the JLGs. The end liability is, of course, of the women who have signed.
The end result for villagers in the district is also pitiful. Apart from the suicides and pressure to return money they don’t have, now they have been blacklisted en masse of doubtful credit integrity by nationalised banks, so they are unable to get loans. The only ones laughing all the way to and from the bank are the perpetrators of the smart project.

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Do not kill the goose that lays the golden egg, goes the takeaway from the tale about a goose and its greedy owner, who eviscerated it to get hold of all the golden eggs that he thought were inside its belly. The precarious state of today’s microfinance (MFI) lenders is not so different from that of the owner, the golden goose being India’s lucrative MFI market. The MFI industry is in a lot of stress today owing to multiple factors. But the misery is largely brought upon by the players themselves, as a consequence of aggressive push for growth and margins with insufficient risk controls.
In our bl.portfolio edition dated November 3, 2024, we had given insights on warning signals from the sector following the release of Q2FY25 results and how this could impact private banks with exposure to this segment. Now as earnings season is underway, lot more insights can be gleaned from the Q3 FY25 results that will be reported by banks and NBFCs. In this edition, we take stock of the listed NBFCs that have significant exposure to the sector and what investors should watch out for.
As the MFI industry largely caters to the credit-starved rural population, it is also a space that is underpenetrated by mainstream banks (excluding small finance banks), which have a market share of about 33 per cent (as per a report by CRIF High Mark, a Credit Information Company).
MFI lending, or any kind of lending for that matter, is a simple game, if one can answer three questions right – whom to lend, how much to lend and at what rate. The sector being cyclical, it could be susceptible to adverse events, including climate related too. But the fact that the gross NPA (GNPA) ratios of most of the lenders are at their peaks in over six quarters, sends a message that they may not have answered the three questions right.
Top reasons for repayment challenges, as cited by MFI lenders, include erratic trends in income, excess rainfall, heat wave and attrition affecting collections. Yet the fundamental cause seems to be the aggressive push for growth and higher margin, and throwing caution to the wind.
The gross loan portfolio (GLP) of all MFI lenders has grown from ₹2.32 lakh crore as of FY20 to ₹4.43 lakh crore as of FY24 at a rate of 18 per cent compounded (Source: CRIF High Mark). The growth rate for NBFC-MFIs has been at a higher 24 per cent. Such growth resulted in lending to overleveraged borrowers, meaning companies were lending fresh loans to borrowers who already had other loan(s) subsisting. As of Q2 FY25, about 8 per cent of the total MFI portfolio is represented by loans to borrowers who are indebted to five or more lenders. And this is the section that has the most delinquencies, going as high as 22 per cent on a PAR 31-180 basis (PAR – portfolio at risk; loans overdue for more than 30 days but not exceeding 180 days).
In October 2022, the RBI deregulated the interest rates that can be charged for MFI loans. This was done in good faith that the competitive forces in the space would lead to lower rates. Unfortunately, that has not transpired. Instead, the yields of NBFC-MFIs have gone up, while the cost of funds has remained largely constant. Observe the spread (yield on loans minus cost of funds) broadening in the infographic.
Former RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das called rates of 25 per cent are usurious for people of small means and that some lenders were not transparent about the penalties in case of default. In fact, the central bank in late-October 2024, banned Asirvad Micro Finance (subsidiary of Manappuram Finance) and Arohan Financial Services from disbursing fresh loans after it found the spreads to be excessive and not in adherence with regulations. Following the lifting of ban on Arohan in early January, the ban on Asirvad was also lifted recently, after the entities made satisfactory moves to fall in line with the regulator’s guidelines.
A key issue for which the lenders can’t be faulted though, is the expectation of loan waivers among the borrowers, especially around election times. Managements contend that this discourages even those borrowers who are regular in their repayments to default.
Based on data from CRIF High Mark, we analysed and ranked States on criteria mentioned in the infographic. States such as Rajasthan, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh rank high in terms of worst delinquencies. These States witnessed Assembly Elections in the past couple of years. They also feature in the top 10 States by size of MFI portfolio and are key geographies for the listed NBFCs we analysed.
Consequently, collection efficiency (roughly, percentage of money collected compared to instalment due) declined and so MFI players scaled back on fresh sanctions. Disbursals at the industry level during Q1 and Q2 of FY25 dropped 31 per cent and 13 per cent quarter over quarter. GLP, too, dropped 6.5 per cent from FY24 to ₹4.1 lakh crore. 
As the chaos unfurled, a couple of months ago, the MFIN (Microfinance Industry Network), a self-regulatory organisation for entities in this space, introduced stricter underwriting norms, building on the guardrails brought in July, to be given effect from January 1, 2025. Key ones include limiting lender associations (number of lenders the borrower is indebted to) to a maximum of three MFI entities per borrower from the current four and limiting indebtedness per borrower to a maximum of ₹2 lakh. MFIN also urged the boards of MFI entities to review the interest rates charged, to pass on efficiency gains if any, to the customer.
Now the norm about limiting lender associations to three has been deferred by three months, with the rest having been adopted. This is because of difficulties faced in upgrading systems in line with the new norms in little time. Whether such delays will result in further stress remains to be seen.
We have analysed listed NBFC-MFIs and other NBFCs with a sizeable exposure to the MFI sector with a market-cap of over ₹1,000 crore. The universe includes (sorted large to small by size of MFI AUM) L&T Finance, CreditAccess Grameen (CAG), Muthoot Microfin, Fusion Finance (Fusion), IIFL Finance (IIFL), Manappuram Finance (Manappuram), Spandana Sphoorty Financial (SSF), Satin Creditcare Network (Satin) and Northern Arc Capital (NACL).
L&T Finance, IIFL, Manappuram and NACL are engaged in other businesses too such as gold loans, auto loans, mortgages and SME loans apart from MFI loans, offering diversification to the portfolio.
As said earlier, there has been no dearth of growth in AUM in the past. Over the five quarters spanning over Q1 FY24 to Q1 FY25, the average growth in MFI AUM of the players analysed has been about 23 per cent. L&T Finance and SSF saw the highest growth with CAGRs of 29 per cent each. The quarterly year-on-year growth in disbursals in this period has come at an average of 26.4 per cent. However, as the stress ballooned in the second quarter of FY25, the companies scaled back on disbursals during the quarter.
GNPA ratio spiked in Q2 FY25. The average GNPA ratio of players analysed grew to 4.4 per cent as of Q2 from 2.3 per cent as of Q4 FY24 (GNPA ratios of the respective MFI businesses alone are compared; MFI specific data of L&T Finance and NACL were not available; their overall GNPA ratio stood at 2.8 per cent and 0.6 per cent).
Provisions, too, grew, bumping up credit cost, which meant profits plummeted. The average year-on-year drop in Q2 profit was 125 per cent (profit from MFI businesses alone considered; overall profit grew 17 per cent and 28 per cent for L&T Finance and NACL). Profits of Fusion, SSF and IIFL declined the most by 342 per cent, 273 per cent and 133 per cent, and thereby reporting losses. Fusion was not profitable in Q1 too.
Annualised Return on Assets (overall basis), too, eroded from an average of 4 per cent for Q4 FY24 to -0.2 per cent for Q2 FY25. Return on Assets (RoA) of Fusion, SSF and IIFL turned negative during the quarter as the bottom line turned red.
There have been views on growth picking up with December being a good quarter seasonally and good Kharif and Rabi harvests expected. Reservoir levels could aid this. However, with players gradually implementing the tightened underwriting norms prescribed by MFIN, growth is expected to be impacted. Managements of CAG and Muthoot Microfin, for instance, have lowered their original guidance given for FY25. Their revised guidance for AUM growth and RoA stands at roughly half the figures originally guided for and credit cost guidance has been doubled. Things are expected to get better for the industry only in the next fiscal
In the week gone by, MFI stocks rallied on the back of the industry having approached the government for Covid ECLGS-like guarantee scheme and support for low-cost funds. Given that the entities are adequately capitalised, it is unlikely that the government will oblige.
Stock prices of all players analysed have crashed by an average 44 per cent from their 52-week highs. The fall in percentage is as follows – Fusion 74, SSF 67, Satin 47, CAG 46, NACL 39, IIFL 36, Muthoot 36, L&T Finance 28 and Manappuram 22.. Multiples too have fallen, making the price to book value (P/B) ratios seem optically attractive at current levels, but not really. This has happened not on the back of earnings growth, but due to derating driven by worsening fundamentals.
Investors looking for fresh exposure to this sector are better off waiting out, until signs of better fundamentals emerge. Buying these stocks can very well turn out to be like catching a falling knife rather than a value buy. In the current earnings season, investors must follow metrics such as GNPA ratio and Stage-2 (overdue by 31-89 days) assets ratio along with impairment expense and credit cost ratio to gain more clarity on what is playing out in the sector. Collection efficiency also needs to be watched as lenders have allocated more resources on the collection front.
Of the lot, NBFCs with a diversified AUM might fare better in the near term. As far as private banks are concerned, which we had covered in our Big Story dated November 3, 2024, investors need to closely monitor the MFI trends for banks with high MFI exposure such as Ujjivan (65 per cent), Suryoday (56 per cent), Bandhan (45 per cent), IDFC First (10 per cent), IndusInd (9 per cent) and RBL (8 per cent).
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December numbers signal improving microfinance situation: MFIN CEO  Business Standard
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