ESAF Small Finance Bank
Indian small finance bank From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
ESAF Small Finance Bank (formerly known as ESAF Microfinance and Investments) is an Indian small finance bank headquartered in Thrissur, Kerala, providing banking services and small loans to the underbanked. Having started its operations as an NGO in 1992 under the name of Evangelical Social Action Forum, ESAF Microfinance was a non-banking finance company and microfinance institution (NBFC-MFI), licensed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). It became a small finance bank in March 2017 and started operating in January 2018.[2]
 ESAF Small Finance Bank logo since 10 March 2017 | |
 Registered and corporate office at Mannuthy, Thrissur | |
| Formerly | ESAF Microfinance and Investments Pvt. Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Company type | Public |
| Industry | Banking |
| Founded | 10 March 2017 |
| Headquarters | Mannuthy, Thrissur (Registered & Corporate Office) |
Number of locations | 765 branches (2024) |
Area served | India |
Key people |
|
| Revenue | ₹3,141 crore (US$370 million) (FY23)[1] |
| ₹893 crore (US$100 million) (FY23)[1] | |
| ₹302 crore (US$35 million) (FY23)[1] | |
Number of employees | 4,100 (2022) |
| Website | www |
History and operations
Summarize
Perspective
On 11 March 1992, K. Paul Thomas,[3] along with Mereena Paul and a few friends, started ESAF in a small house in Mannuthy named Little.[4] Jacob Samuel, one of the co-founders, coined the name ESAF, which is an acronym for Evangelical Social Action Forum. At inception, ESAF had five life members, seven annual members and eight honorary members. ESAF society was registered under the Travancore Cochin Literary, Scientific and Charitable Societies Registration Act. The initial president was Itty Mathew; J. Danabai was the vice president, Thomas was the secretary, supported by Samuel as joint secretary and Arun Ramakrishnan as treasurer.[5]
ESAF started providing interest free loans in 1995 as one of the first microfinance institutions in the country and the first microfinance company in Kerala. It became ESAF Small Finance Bank after receiving the first banking license in Kerala since independence.[6][7][8]
On 17 March 2017, Pinarayi Vijayan, the Chief Minister of Kerala officially inaugurated ESAF Small Finance Bank at Thrissur, Kerala. By August 2017, the bank had 3,750 employees, 284 branches, and a presence in 11 states.[4]
In March 2018, a year after its launch, the bank had expanded to 4,000 employees and 400 branches, with ₹2,200 crore (US$297 million) in deposits and ₹4,200 crore (US$567 million) in loans.[9][10]
ESAF Small Finance Bank received RBI approval to operate as scheduled bank in December 2018, making it the fifth scheduled bank from Kerala. This will reduce the bank's cost of funds, while increasing the bank's ability and obligation to provide services.[11] The bank's net profit increased to ₹190.39 crore in the 2019-2020 financial year from ₹90.28 crore the previous year.[12][13]
On 26 March 2020, the bank received approval from SEBI for issuing its ₹976 crore initial public offering.[14]
Gallery
Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurating ESAF Small Finance Bank at Thrissur in March, 2017
K. Paul Thomas, Founder of ESAF, MD & CEO of ESAF Small Finance Bank
See also
References
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