Value lending in the informal economy
About Us
We are an NBFC – MFI with a mission to deliver productive and efficient capital in rural India to enable inclusive socioeconomic development. Our microfinance loans are primarily targeted at Self-Help Groups (SHGs) of 10-20 women in rural and semi-urban areas. Since our founding in 2006, we have provided microcredit to more than 800,000 members in over 20,000 villages across six states of India.
Our lending model has its foundation in an innovative SHG peer lending model crafted in 1995, by the former Bank of Madura Chairman and CEO Dr. K M Thiagarajan. Over time, our lending model has evolved to fit the changing needs of our members with the primary goal of making productive capital available to the members at low interest rates and with rapid delivery. Our state-of-the-art technology led processes and data-driven platform are coupled with strong member relationships on the field.
Rural FocusWe have a strong presence in India’s rural pockets and we are committed to understanding our rural borrowers to provide loans for productive use.
Group GuaranteeThe group as a whole stands guarantee for each of its members which reduces risk for the organization while also ensuring that the group members have a support system in place.
100% Cashless DisbursalFrom inception, our loan disbursals have been completely cashless either through cheque or direct account transfer.
Repayment at the BranchOur monthly collection at branch offices, in addition to providing more time for repayment, creates more touch points for the members to interact with the organization and thereby, building trust.
Fully Digitized Loan Processing SystemOur end-to-end digital process starting with loan origination (from the field, on tablets) to processing based on automated rules and enhanced monitoring allows for quick & efficient loan processing with rapid turn-around-times.
Committed to social impact
Madura’s social performance better than industry average both globally and in Asia
Global vs Madura
Global*Madura’s average score
Asia vs Madura
Asia** Madura’s average score
- 1 – Define and monitor social goals
- 2 – Commitment to social goals
- 3 – Design products that meet clients’ needs
- 4 – Treat clients responsibly
- 5 – Treat employees responsibly
- 6 – Balance social and financial performance
Social performance assessment by BNP Paribas using Cerise SPI4 tool
*Average score of all quality audits from SPI4 CERISE Database (N=272)
**Average score across all audits (N=54)
Our Journey
- 2006
Madura started lending to SHGs in Tamil Nadu. Took over SHG business with 9500 SHGs from the predecessor organization Micro Credit Foundation of India (MCFI)
- 2007
Soon after MCFI started operations as Madura, MCFI topped the Forbes list as the world’s most cost-effective micro-finance organization for spending the least to deliver one rupee of loan.
- 2008
Focused on strong core growth portfolio in Tamil Nadu. Built strong internal systems and robust processes to bolster future growth.
- 2010
Branch network comprised of 160 branches spread across rural Tamil Nadu covering 29 districts and 2000 villages. Built new capability for future through redefined process and mobile based systems.
- 2011
Emerged strongly from the AP Microfinance crisis and stayed profitable with higher than industry RoA (2.14 in FY12 compared to industry average of -7.15) with steady growth of SHG operations
- 2012
Founded Madura Micro Education, a wholly owned subsidiary, to extend the company’s role from providing capital to offering digital education to micro-entrepreneurs in rural areas through Micro Business Education (MBE) courses
- 2013
Digitization journey started through technology led processes to handle loan origination and sanction with automation and enhanced monitoring. Launched Certified Activity Term Loan (CATL), a new product, for members who successfully complete MBE course.
- 2014
Established initial footprint in Karnataka and Maharashtra. Developed a data framework, an engine for growth, that provides a deep understanding of our member ecosystems and member behavior. Madura Micro Education received a soft loan of Rs. 7 Crore from NSDC to scale operations.
- 2015
Focused on intelligent growth with state-of-the-art data management systems and analytics. Field staff started using tablets for end-to-end digitization of field workflow. Built a strong management team with functional and vertical expertise backed by highly trained execution staff to bring greater agility and speed in our operations.
- 2016
Crossed GLP of Rs. 500 crores becoming a systemically important NBFC-MFI. Expanded geographic presence to Kerala creating footprint in high impact locations.
- 2017
Performed better than industry during demonetization crisis with repayment rate at 97.44% when compared to industry’s at 75%-80%. Introduced greater efficiencies into the field processes with new applications to track performance at village level.
- 2018
Continued geographic diversification by expanding branch network to Bihar and Odisha. Crossed GLP milestone of Rs.1000 crores on our journey to increasing impact in rural communities and empowering microentrpreneurs.