MFI Spandana Sphoorty expects to disburse Rs 1,000 cr in Q4 of FY22

The company had put disbursements on hold in Q3FY22 after its managing director Padmaja Reddy resigned abruptly last November

After a long “pause” on lending in the third quarter, troubled microfinance institution Spandana Sphoorty Ltd has resumed disbursements and expects to lend Rs 1,000 crore in the fourth quarter (Q4FY22).

The company had put disbursements on hold in the October-December 2021 period (Q3FY22) after its managing director Padmaja Reddy resigned abruptly in November 2021.

The MFI, backed by private equity investor Kedaara Capital, said in a statement that it has already resumed its regular disbursal activity in January 2022. It has disbursed Rs 30 crore of new loans in the month of February so far.

It posted a net profit of Rs 39.7 crore in the third quarter ended December 30, 2021 as against loss of Rs 30.3 crore a year ago. The MFI had also reported a loss of Rs 58.8 crore in the second quarter ended September 2021 (Q2FY22).

The Spandana Sphoorty stock closed 3.2 per cent higher at Rs 382 per share on BSE.

The cash collection in December 2021 and January 2022 continued to be robust at Rs 445 crore per month. February collections continue to stay similarly strong.

Spandana has upgraded IT systems over the last three months including a comprehensive audit trail with maker-checker systems and a tightly integrated system from Loan Origination to General Ledger. Now it has Microsoft Azure-based cloud environment with live backups, access to web-based technology at any time.

Employee attrition is at three per cent in the current quarter – one of the lowest levels in the company’s history – and continued hiring is in progress to further augment the team. This will provide a robust foundation from which to drive sustainable growth and profitability, it added.