Northern Arc Executes $20 Million ECB Funding For CreditAccess Grameen Limited

Northern Arc, the technology-enabled diversified financial services platform has structured and arranged $20 million ECB funding from The Development Bank of Austria, Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank AG (OeEB) for CreditAccess Grameen Limited (CA Grameen).

This funding will be utilised by CA Grameen to provide micro-loans to women borrowers from low-income households for income-generating activities, thereby promoting their access to formal financing. This transaction said to be aligning with OeEB’s commitment to gender equality, anchored as a cross-sector objective in their investment strategy.

“We congratulate both teams on the successful transaction in the backdrop of volatility in currency rates market and a challenging environment for overseas issuances. This transaction is another testament to Northern Arc’s expertise in partnering with Originators across size and credit rating spectra. We look forward to continuing our efforts towards enabling financial inclusion and empowering women entrepreneurs in India,” said Bama Balakrishnan, chief operating officer of Northern Arc Capital. 

“The OeEB fundraise marks the third ESG-linked loan in our inclusive finance journey with US$ 80 million raised so far. We continue to assess and improve our ESG practices ensuring the alignment with our ethos of empowering local communities. Rural India is a shining spot in the sustainability realm where our deep presence and unique operating model makes a perfect case to channelise ESG funds whilst increasing investment resilience,” added Udaya Kumar Hebbar, managing director and chief executive officer of CA Grameen. 

“We are delighted to extend this credit line to CA Grameen. We believe this will contribute to strengthening the financial inclusion of poor and low-income households as well as to promoting gender equality, in the rural areas of India. We are grateful to Northern Arc for their all-around assistance on this transaction,” observed Sabine Gaber, member of OeEB’s Executive Board.

Northern Arc is a technology-enabled diversified financial services platform that provides credit to MSMEs, households, financial institutions and emerging businesses. Through technology and data, it provides a diverse set of solutions to cater to the credit requirements of emerging segments and small businesses. Its business model is diversified across offerings, sectors, products, geographies and borrower segments.

Northern Arc has cumulatively raised over Rs 1.4 lakh crores (Rs 1.4 trillion) in funds since the inception of its platform in 2009.  It has reportedly disbursed a total of over 9.5 million (95 lakhs) loans to retail customers across individuals, households and small businesses.