SKS Microfinance's loan exposure in Orissa at Rs 2034 cr

SKS Microfinance Ltd, India's largest and only listed Micro Finance Institution (MFI), has disbursed loans worth Rs 2034 crore in Orissa in the past five years, reaching out to 7.4 lakh borrowers in the state.

The company has an outstanding loan amount of Rs 430 crore (as on September 30, 2010) and has so far set up 197 branches in 28 districts of the state.

"Our cumulative disbursements in Orissa in the past five years has been Rs 2034 crore and we have reached out to 13002 villages and urban colonies in the state. SKS has set up 197 branches in Orissa and has an employee strength of 1804 in the state”, Vikram Akula, chairman, SKS Microfinance Ltd said here.

On a pan-India basis, Akula said that the company's cumulative loan disbursements stands at Rs 19,841 crore with the outstanding loan amount being Rs 5400 crore. SKS currently has a presence in 19 states of the country, reaching out to over one lakh villages in 379 districts.

Asked if SKS Microfinance had any plan to exit Andhra Pradesh in the wake of a draconian ordinance introduced by that state, Akula clarified that the company has no intention of quitting its operations in Andhra Pradesh.

"We started our operations in Andhra Pradesh and we will stay in that state which accounts for around 25 per cent of our business. We hope that the Andhra Pradesh government will withdraw its Act on MFIs”, he added.

He also stated that SKS Microfinance has continued to draw funds post the Andhra Pradesh crisis even though the banks have pruned lending.

"Its not true that the banks have stopped lending to all MFIs as they have stopped lending only to small and medium size institutions”, he clarified.