Microfinance lender CreditAccess Grameen has successfully secured $175 million through a syndicated social loan facility, qualifying as an External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) under the Reserve Bank of India's automatic route. According to reports from The Economic Times, the transaction attracted participation from 10 financial institutions across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, demonstrating strong international confidence in the company's business model. The Bengaluru-based NBFC-MFI signed the pact on Monday for this significant funding initiative, coming amid global macroeconomic uncertainties and heightened competition in the external borrowing market from the mobilisation of foreign currency non-resident (FCNR-B) deposits.
The syndication saw participation from Standard Chartered Bank and DBS Bank as joint mandated lead arrangers and bookrunners, with anchor contributions from Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) and DBS Bank (GIFT City). As reported by The Economic Times, the participating lenders include Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC (Sri Lanka), The Korea Development Bank (South Korea), Sampath Bank PLC (Sri Lanka), SBI (Mauritius) Ltd, BCP Bank (Mauritius) Ltd, Al Masraf (United Arab Emirates), The National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah (UAE), and KEXIM Asia Ltd (Hong Kong).
The fund will be raised for an average 3.25 years at 6% rate, with the coupon pegged at 215 basis points over the secured overnight financing rate (SOFR), which is currently at 3.85%, as reported by The Economic Times. The company will pay hedging costs over this period, but CFO Nilesh Dalvi noted that while current hedging costs have temporarily risen, the overall impact on cost of borrowings is limited since this funding constitutes only 7% of total borrowings. The company aims to raise 15-20% of annual borrowing requirements through ECBs every year to diversify its liability profile.
This marks the company's fifth successful ECB syndication transaction in the past five years, bringing total funds mobilised through such transactions to $640 million. According to The Economic Times, foreign borrowings currently account for around 24% of its liability profile, with the company having built a lender base across 15 countries. The longer tenure of ECBs helps strengthen the company's asset liability management (ALM) profile, making this a continual exercise required for diversifying its liability structure. The latest funding will support microfinance lending and financial inclusion initiatives.
The company has demonstrated active fundraising across multiple instruments in recent months. In September 2026, CreditAccess Grameen raised ₹300 crore through a bilateral non-convertible debenture (NCD) issue, while in June 2026, it secured ₹425 crore through a private placement of NCDs with Bajaj Finance. As reported by The Economic Times, the company has also raised ₹940 crore through multiple private placements of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) during FY27, with pricing broadly in line with its average cost of borrowings. These additional fundraising activities demonstrate the company's diversified approach to accessing capital markets and maintaining a robust funding pipeline for its microfinance operations.
Nilesh Dalvi, Chief Financial Officer of CreditAccess Grameen, commented that the successful closure at competitive pricing demonstrates the strength of the company's franchise and confidence from international lenders. As reported by The Economic Times, Dalvi highlighted the proven performance track record, strong corporate governance standards, deep customer relationships across India's hinterland, and disciplined risk management as key factors behind the success. The company intends to continue focusing on optimising funding costs, maintaining a robust asset-liability management profile, and strengthening balance-sheet resilience.
