Advent, Multiples to invest ₹1,930 crore in Svatantra Microfin

Private equity (PE) funds Advent International and Multiples said they will invest ₹1,930 crore in Ananya Birla’s Svatantra Microfin. They said this will be the largest PE investment in the sector in India.

Mint had reported on the development in February, noting that the Mumbai-based microfinance institution (MFI) would use the funds to expand and consolidate its growth.

The investment, which is subject to statutory and regulatory approvals, follows Svatantra’s recent acquisition of Chaitanya India Fin Credit Ltd. It acquired the Bengalurubased company for ₹1,479 crore in a fully equity-funded deal after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) denied Chaitanya India Fin Credit a universal banking licence.

“Upon completion of the proposed transaction and merger with Chaitanya, the combined entity will be among the largest non-banking microfinance companies in India.

The current promoter group led by Ananya Birla will continue to have a significant majority stake,” the firm said.

Svatantra, launched in 2013, provides financial and non-financial solutions to women entrepreneurs. Once the deal goes through, it will have over 17,000 employees and over 4.2 million customers across more than 20 states.

Ananya Birla, chairperson of

Svatantra, said, “My team and I are grateful to have investors who share our vision. This transformative era for Svatantra propels us towards our goal of becoming the foremost and most impactful microfinance institution.”

Shweta Jalan, managing partner, Advent International, said, “We believe the microfinance sector serves as a cornerstone for financial inclusion for women entrepreneurs in rural areas, and Svatantra is uniquely placed to create one of the largest and most resilient microfinance institutions. We look forward to supporting the team at Svatantra as they embark on their next phase of sustainable growth and profitability.”

Renuka Ramnath, founder, MD and CEO of Multiples, said, “[Svatantra’s] recent acquisition of Chaitanya brings together two exceptional platforms and management teams. In line with Multiples’s ethos of powering new possibilities, we look forward to partnering the

Svatantra team in its journey of expanding products, stepping up technology, and enhancing analytics to widen the reach of its transformational impact.”

Svatantra reported a total income of ₹1,396 crore and profit after tax of ₹130 crore in FY23, according to data from Crisil. In FY22 its total income was ₹831 crore and profit ₹47 crore.

Advent has made 18 investments totalling $6 billion, including $1.2 billion across six investments in the financialservices sector (including Chaitanya).

The investment, which is subject to regulatory approvals, will be used to expand and consolidate the MFI’s growth