OPIC Provides $5 Million in Financing to Grameen Impact Investments India
June 11, 2018
(OPIC)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Overseas Private
Investment Corporation (OPIC) announced that $5
million in local currency financing has been
mobilized to Grameen Impact under an OPIC loan
guaranty agreement with India’s IndusInd
Bank. The financing was deployed through
IndusInd’s Impact Investing division, which
will support Grameen Impact’s lending to
local small and medium enterprises.
The guaranty from OPIC, the U.S. Government’s
development finance institution, enabled the
Bank to disburse an equivalent loan of 335
million rupees to Grameen Impact. This
eliminates foreign exchange rate fluctuation
risk from the balance sheet of Grameen Impact,
a major challenge faced by borrowers in
emerging markets. Grameen Impact is a non-bank
financial institution backed by Grameen Capital
India, whose shareholders include leading
domestic as well as global impact investors.
Grameen Impact will use the financing to make
loans to high impact social enterprises in
India in sectors including financial services,
affordable healthcare, affordable education,
renewable energy and sustainable agriculture.
“OPIC has a strong commitment to impact
investing. By supporting lending to high-impact
businesses in local currency, this project will
help businesses in India overcome one of the
main challenges to obtaining financing,” said
Ray W. Washburne, OPIC President and CEO.
"Specialized financial institutions like
Grameen Impact bring an in-depth understanding
of the impact investing ecosystem, and IndusInd
provides liquidity support and helps them build
scale. Together partnerships like these create
the most meaningful impact on the social
enterprise landscape in India," said Roopa
Satish, Head Corporate and Investment Banking,
IndusInd Bank.
"India has rapidly become a global leader in
impact investing, with over $5 billion of
investments in this space. However, the bulk of
this is equity; even today social enterprises
struggle to raise debt financing, which is
critical for scale. Grameen Impact India is
delighted to partner with OPIC and IndusInd in
furthering our commitment to build a
‘capital-with-a-conscience’ ecosystem,”
said Royston Braganza, CEO of Grameen Impact
Investments.
Grameen Impact’s support for microfinance
institutions, social enterprises and small
business lenders helps create local jobs and
promote economic growth in India, where an
estimated 30 percent of the population lives
below the official poverty line and most adults
lack access to formal financial services.
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