Ananya Birla's Svatantra Microfin To Acquire Sachin Bansal's Chaitanya India According to an official release, the transaction of INR 1,479 crore is expected to be completed by the end of 2023, subject to receipt of regulatory approvals and customary closing adjustments
By Teena Jose
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Ananya Birla's microfinance platform rural women entrepreneurs Svatantra Microfin on Tuesday said it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Chaitanya India Fin Credit, the NBFC-MFI arm of a wholly owned subsidiary of Navi Group, which was co-founded by Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal.
According to an official release, the transaction of INR 1,479 crore is expected to be completed by the end of 2023, subject to receipt of regulatory approvals and customary closing adjustments.
As per the company, the acquisition, once completed, will make Svatantra the second-largest microfinance company in India with a reach of more than 3.6 million active customers through 1,517 branches across 20 states and a combined AUM of INR 12,409 crore as on March 31, 2023.
"The proposed acquisition will propel Svatantra to a significant leadership position. The combined entity will command a substantial reach, enabling the delivery of a diverse array of financial services to our clients across a geographically diverse portfolio," said Ananya Birla, Founder and Chairperson of Svatantra in a statement.
As per the company, the acquisition, once completed, will make Svatantra the second-largest microfinance company in India with a reach of more than 3.6 million active customers through 1,517 branches across 20 states and a combined AUM of INR 12,409 crore as on March 31, 2023.
"We are committed to being a responsible lender, and I believe our synergistic strengths and shared ethos will accelerate our ongoing journey to create a unique, valuable and impactful financial services entity," added Birla.
Incorporated in 2012, Svatantra offers microcredit at affordable rates to rural women who are entrepreneurs themselves
"This transaction is in line with our strategic plan to focus on our digital-first businesses, as we continue our digital-first financial services through the Navi Group," said Bansal in the statement.
Chaitanya, founded in 2009, was acquired by Bansal in October 2019 (along with its parent entity, now called Navi Finserv Limited) for about INR 150 crore. It focuses on servicing rural India digitally with support from its parent company Navi and making credit accessible to all of rural India.
