Apcob to design credit products for small farmers

Andhra Pradesh State Cooperative Bank (Apcob), with the support of International Finance Corporation (IFC), will design new credit and non-credit products, including loans, savings, insurance and remittances, for small farmers in the state.

IFC will assist the bank in developing a system of robust risk management to promote responsible finance and check over-indebtedness among farmers. The project will also include training for the bank’s staff and its member institutions.

“Credit products offered under the mandated priority sector lending tend to be mostly basic crop loans, which do not meet the full financing needs of farmers. This project will help us expand the product and client base substantially, and also strengthen the portfolio quality with better risk management,” Y Vijayender Reddy, president of Apcob, said in a press release on Wednesday.

Apcob comprises 4.3 million small and marginal farmers, whom it serves through a network of district cooperative central banks and financial agricultural cooperative credit societies. The bank will also develop financial products for women entrepreneurs in the state, the release added.