CreditAccess Grameen Ltd, which is India’s largest microlender might have a new owner soo as its Dutch promoter CreditAccess India B V is planning to exit the company.
The aforementioned Amsterdam-based company holds a 66.56 percent stake in CreditAccess Grameen, and is targeting a valuation of around USD 2.7 billion. If this is achieved, the deal would be the largest in India’s USD 51 billion microfinance sector.
CreditAccess India B V is further backed by Olympus Capital Asia and the Asian Development Bank. Furthermore, the company has engaged investment banks Jefferies, Barclays Investment Bank, and Bank of America to look for prospective buyers.
Bengaluru-based CreditAccess Grameen Ltd stands as the largest microfinancer among 87 such entities in India. Also, it has a gross loan asset of INR 26,700 crore at the end of FY24. A credible source has said that the talks for the potential takeover have attracted several banks.
According to its Friday closing price, CreditAccess Grameen Ltd had a market value of INR 20,000 crore. And since it is a publicly-traded company, a potential deal would also require permission from the Reserve Bank of India and as well as from the market regulator - SEBI.
Also to note, a result published in mid-July, the company had reported a net profit increase of 14.12 percent which stood at INR 397.66 crore in the quarter ending in June 2024.
Moreover, during the same period, the company logged a 29.23 percent jump in sales to INR 1512.03 crore. While, in the year-ago period, its sales stood at INR 1170.03 crore. Currently, the experts are of the view that it has the potential to command up to 20 percent premium on the current market value due to the lender’s unique position.
