Arohan Financial Services Private Limited, has announced a lower lending rate of 22.35% from the present rate of 22.99% for its flagship micro loan product, Saral, catering to socio-economically disadvantaged women. The lower rate rolled out is effective from October 1, 2017 and this revision has made Arohan the second best priced NBFC-MFI and the third best-priced microfinance lender across banks and the industry at large in West Bengal, Bihar, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Meghalaya, Odisha, Tripura and Uttar Pradesh, the low-income states in which it operates. The new lending rate will be applicable for all the existing, as well as, the new borrowers who obtain a new loan from Arohan from October 1, 2017, onwards and will be available across all its states of operations.

The rate cut has been enabled due to retained lender confidence and lower borrowing costs on account of an A- credit rating by CARE, with a stable outlook, also driven by sufficient capitalization by existing and new investors in the entity. The organization believes that the lower pricing will be welcomed by their customers. This move has been possible because of Arohan exploring newer avenues to raise funds at lower costs and their ability to operate more efficiently than before.

Commenting on the revised rates, Manoj Nambiar, Managing Director, Arohan Financial Services Private Limited said, “Saral currently caters to almost 8 lakh women customers of Arohan, who are from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds across the low-income states of Eastern, Central, and North-Eastern India. We hope this rate cut will benefit Arohan’s customers across our operations; the organization will continue to extend support to borrowers and work towards our vision of enhancing their livelihoods and empowering the underserved.”

Arohan has always strived to provide the most effective rates to its borrowers on all its loan products. It has also partnered with Paytm Payments Bank to assist its customers to adopt and transition to cashless modes of payment. Currently, Arohan’s loan portfolio is over 1200 crore as of September 30, 2017, catering to over 8 lakh customers across nine states. The company is looking at closing the financial year with a loan book of ₹2,000 crore and is also aiming to tap the capital markets through an initial public offering in some time.