Oikocredit and GAWA Capital provide equity finance for new generation microfinance company Sindhuja Microcredit

Amersfoort, the Netherlands – Worldwide cooperative and social impact investor Oikocredit is joining forces with GAWA Capital to invest US$ 14.5 million in Sindhuja Microcredit, a digital and rural-focused microfinance institution (MFI) providing financial services to self-employed women entrepreneurs.

Sindhuja, in its six years of operation, has provided micro loans to more than 400,000 self-employed women micro entrepreneurs across nine states in northern, eastern and western India. The MFI serves ‘base of the pyramid’ clients through 235 branches, most of which are in rural and remote areas. With over INR 10 billion (approx. US$ 120 million) in assets under management, Sindhuja will use the new capital to expand its microfinance services and develop new product lines.

Sindhuja Co-Founders Abhisheka Kumar (Managing Director) and Malkit Singh Didyala (Chief Executive Officer), welcoming the investment, said: “GAWA Capital and Oikocredit are well-known international impact investors, and it is a matter of pride for us to have their backing alongside our existing investors, Carpediem Capital and Abler Nordic.”

Agustín Vitórica, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of GAWA Capital, which is investing through its vehicle Huruma Fund, said: “We're thrilled to join forces with Sindhuja and look forward to supporting their growth and expansion into new areas and products, focusing on rural areas, women borrowers and India's underserved farming community.”

Abhinav Natani, Equity Analyst at Oikocredit, said: “At Oikocredit we believe financial inclusion is a catalyst for driving social and economic development. Our decision to invest in Sindhuja in India underscores our commitment to provide access to finance for low-income people and communities. We are thrilled to work with Sindhuja to elevate financial inclusion to new heights.”

About Sindhuja Microcredit

Sindhuja Microcredit, founded in 2018 and an Oikocredit credit partner since 2022, is a NBFC-MFI (non-banking financial company/MFI) registered with the Reserve Bank of India and headquartered in Noida. Dedicated to meeting the financial and non-financial needs of rural and semi-urban people, Sindhuja provides microfinance to skilled women entrepreneurs who lack capital, as well as business loans to traders, shopkeepers and farmers for working capital needs or for expanding their businesses.

For more information, visit www.sindhujamicrocredit.com.

Media contact: Rohit Tandon, email: Rohit.tandon@sindhujamicrocredit.com, telephone: +91 9899 603291.

About GAWA Capital and Huruma Fund

Founded in 2009, GAWA Capital is the leading impact investing advisory firm in Spain. It seeks to improve the lives of low-income communities by promoting investment in social enterprises, while also providing a financial return to investors. To date, GAWA has managed and advised over € 204 million, with investments in 16 countries.

Huruma Fund is a project led by Spain’s state-owned enterprise COFIDES in the framework of the European Union's agricultural blending facilities. Managed by GAWA Capital, it has € 120 million provided by the EU (as catalytic investor), FONPRODE (an instrument of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation –- AECID), COFIDES, and private investors, with the collaboration of CaixaBank Banca Privada. It aims to facilitate access to credit for smallholder farmers in underserved areas of Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

For more information, visit www.gawacapital.com and fondohuruma.com.

About Oikocredit

Social impact investor and worldwide cooperative Oikocredit has nearly five decades of experience funding organisations active in financial inclusion, agriculture and renewable energy.

Oikocredit's loans, equity investments and capacity building aim to enable people on low incomes in Africa, Asia and Latin America to improve their living standards sustainably.

Oikocredit finances more than 500 partners, with total development financing capital outstanding of € 1,037.2 million (at September 2023).

For more information, visit www.oikocredit.coop.

Note for editors

For more information about Oikocredit or to request an interview, please contact: Viviana Cordero, Communications Business Partner, Oikocredit International, telephone: +31 33 422 4040, email: vcordero@oikocredit.org.