India: developing women’s entrepreneurship and financial inclusion

IndusInd Bank Limited (IBL) is an Indian commercial bank which integrated the activity of the microfinance institution Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd (BFIL) in 2019. With over 8 million borrowers, IndusInd is today the 2nd largest player in the microfinance sector in India. The bank operates in 24 Indian States and over 100,000 villages, in particular in rural regions, and thereby contributes to increasing financial inclusion.

The USD 75m loan allocated by Proparco will allow the bank to develop its portfolio of microfinance projects and support women entrepreneurs in seven of the poorest States in India: Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

In this respect, the project qualifies under the 2X Challenge, the multilateral initiative which aims to support projects that empower women as entrepreneurs, business leaders, employees and consumers of products and services, and increase their participation in the economy.

The main impacts of this project are: 

• A major contribution to the development of women’s entrepreneurship and the financial inclusion of women in the poorest regions in India, by financing microcredits for some 250,000 women. The women entrepreneurs in IndusInd’s portfolio mainly work in the sectors of livestock farming (44%) and small business (grocery stores, fruit and vegetables – 19%). 
• 11,800 jobs supported in the microenterprises which may be financed. 

The project will thereby contribute to the achievement of SDG 5 (Gender equality) and SDG 8 (Decent work and economic growth).