Svatantra Microfin buys Sachin Bansal’s Chaitanya India Fin for $178m

By Gloria Mathias

Svatantra Microfin by Ananya Birla has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Chaitanya India Fin Credit, a wholly owned subsidiary of Navi Group (Navi). The transaction of INR 1,479 Cr ($178 million) is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.

Svatantra and Chaitanya are new-generation NBFC-MFIs leveraging technology to create impact and offer financial services to rural India.

Commenting on the development, Ananya Birla, Founder and Chairperson of Svatantra said, “Over the years, the Indian Microfinance industry has been a catalyst in the profound transformation of the Indian financial services sector by democratising finance.”

“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. We are committed to being a responsible lender. 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.

“We are pleased to announce the proposed sale of Chaitanya to Svatantra,” said Navi Chairman & CEO Sachin Bansal. “We have seen Chaitanya grow almost 6X in the last 4 years, making credit accessible to rural India. 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. We believe that Svatantra is a good fit for Chaitanya and that the company will continue to grow and prosper with the combined expertise of both teams.”

Svatantra has emerged as a differentiated process and technology-driven microfinance entity in India that offers microcredit at affordable rates. The organisation provides affordable financial and non-financial solutions to rural women who are entrepreneurs themselves.

Chaitanya, founded in 2009, was acquired by Sachin Bansal in October 2019 (along with its parent entity, now called Navi Finserv Limited). Chaitanya has focused on servicing rural India digitally with support from its parent company Navi and making credit accessible to all of rural India.