Category: Opinions

A few colleagues and I recently travelled through Varanasi and Mirzapur in Eastern Uttar Pradesh visiting Micro Finance Institutions (MFI) in that region and their clients. I am delighted to report that this region, one of the poorest in India, is a hotbed of innovations.

What does the asset allocation look like for people living in remote rural India (villages with less than 5000 population)?

What will it take to make payments universal in India with a ratio closer to one point for every 100 citizens and importantly, who will pay for creating this infrastructure?

There has been much discussion recently about the distorting nature of various indirect subsidies such as those being offered via price controls on fuel and fertiliser.

Every day, billions of low-income households all over the world are saving, borrowing and insuring in myriad ways, formal and informal.

Governments have proven to be too inefficient, the non-profits too small and the corporates too greedy to provide basic services. What about for-profit social enterprises?

The recent controversy surrounding the microfinance sector has entirely eclipsed the fact that it is the first effort in India to have delivered financial services to remote corners of the country in a self-sustaining manner.

With a vast majority of the Indian population living in the rural hinterland, its economy and growth are linked to developmental efforts. Crucial to this is in ensuring that the fruits of financial inclusion reaches their doorstep.

India has a concentrated banking system, which means that if five individuals decide that this needs to be done, it will be done.

The power of finance to transform the lives of the poor is not well understood.