Aavishkaar Goodwell (“AG”), a specialized equity fund dedicated to supporting Indian MFIs, has recently concluded its equity investment in Shre Pathrakali Finance for a significant minority stake.
Shre Pathrakali Finance Co. Pvt Ltd (SPFCL) is a greenfield MFI operating under the brand name of “Utkarsh” that has commenced its micro-credit operations in September 2009 in Varanasi district, Uttar Pradesh – one of the most underserved regions for microcredit. Starting from UP, Utkarsh aims to become a significant player serving customers across Northern and Central India over the next 5 years. The MFI is led by Govind Singh, former business head for Micro-banking at ICICI Bank with over 20 years of experience spanning Micro-Banking, Rural & Agriculture finance, , Retail & Corporate Banking and Retail Infrastructure amongst others.
Utkarsh is further strengthened by an experienced management team as well its long term operational partnership with Intellecash that has enabled it to launch on a strong foundation and reach out to 3000 clients through 7 branches in 3 months since launch. It is also unique in garnering support from professionals from varied walks of life, by way of token equity contributions in their individual capacities. The funding will be used towards early stage operational investments and capital adequacy requirements.
“Aavishkaar Goodwell is proud to partner with Utkarsh on account of its experienced management team, focus on the under-served Northern belt of country and association with IntelleCash. This partnership marks our 3rd investment in a greenfield MFI operation subsequent to Equitas and Suryoday Microfinance and our 2nd investment in an IntelleCash partner” said Vineet Rai, Managing Partner, Aavishkaar Goodwell, also representing AG on Utkarsh’s board.
Govind Singh, Founder & CEO of Utkarsh- “We believe we have an important role to play in supporting people who have skills but lack resources to improve their livelihoods. We chose to commence our operations from Eastern UP as it is one of the most underdeveloped regions with very low penetration of MFIs. It is great to have Aavishkaar Goodwell as a partner for not only providing timely seed capital support but also their contribution in shaping Utkarsh by involving themselves in strategic planning."
Source: Pressreleasepoint
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