Microfinance portfolio jumps by 26% in December quarter, says report

Microfinance portfolio for lenders grew 26 per cent to more than Rs 3.24 lakh crore at the end of the December quarter, an industry body said on Friday.

The micro credit portfolio for all the lenders combined together stood at Rs 2.56 lakh crore in the year-ago period, and Rs 3.04 lakh crore at the end of the preceding September quarter, according to data collected by Sa-Dhan, an association of impact finance institutions.

In the December quarter, the Non-Bank Finance Companies-Microfinance Institutions (NBFC-MFI) segment witnessed a faster growth in portfolio at 43.37 per cent as against 9.23 per cent for banks.

The fastest growth was reported by the NBFCs segment at 59.14 per cent, which helped its overall market share to grow to nearly 8.50 per cent as against 6.69 per cent in the year-ago period.

Sa-Dhan's executive director and chief executive Jiji Mammen said festivities and a resurgent economy helped the industry post a healthy growth in the December quarter.

"The overall m