Multilateral funding agency Asian Development Bank (ADB) has sanctioned USD 100 million (about Rs 830 crore) to Shriram Finance Limited (SFL) to provide vehicle loans to women entrepreneurs.
The USD 100 million External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) is a five-year loan and is under SFL’s Social Finance framework to provide credit towards the purchase of new and used vehicles throughout India, Shriram Finance said in a statement. Proceeds from ADB can be used for vehicle finance for commercial purposes for BS VI compliant vehicles and electric vehicles, specifically, finance women entrepreneurs, cater to under-developed states of the country and empower and promote the social and economic status of the underserved communities, it added.
Besides the ADB loan, SFL has also successfully raised USD 250 million from US Development Finance Corporation and USD 475 million through a 144A Bond from the international market in 2022, thereby continuing to diversify its funding profile and continue its objectives for financial inclusion.
Commenting on the fundraise, SFL executive vice chairman Umesh Revankar said the company will finance for buying of vehicles and equipment in new and untapped markets to provide business opportunities and generate employment. This would empower more communities in semi-urban and rural areas to optimise their income and to have a better quality of life, he said.
