Semam Microfinance Investment Literacy and Empowerment (SMILE) and Gram-Utthan receive loan of $2.7 million

As per the most recent newsfeed, Microcapital.org reports that Semam Microfinance Investment Literacy and Empowerment PVT (SMILE) of Madhurai and Gram-Uttham of Orissa have both received loans in the total amount of $2.7 million from Oikocredit, a Dutch cooperative fund.   A profile of the two NGOs follows:

Semam Microfinance Investment Literacy and Empowerment PVT (SMILE) is the largest Grameen-model microfinance institution in Southern India. Established originally in 1999 as Mahasemam Trust, SMILE is a non-bank financial company (NBFC) that targets poor women, offering microfinance services including savings, loans, and insurance to promote poverty alleviation and sustainable development in the Southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. SMILE currently has over 175 thousand active borrowers and a total loan portfolio of USD 16.4 million with total assets of USD 20 million as reported by The Mix Market. Their return on assets (ROA) was reported at .46 percent as of December 2007 with a return on equity (ROE) of 6.15 percent.

Gram-Uttham is a microfinance institution founded in 1990 in the eastern Indian state of Orissa as part of the CARE India/ Credit and Savings for Household Enterprise (CASHE) project to facilitate social and economic development in poor rural villages. Gram Uttham offers credit, savings, insurance, and self-help group services to clients, focusing on local fishing villages. Gram-Uttham currently has over 41 thousand active borrowers and a total loan portfolio of USD 5.5 million and total assets of USD 6.6 million. Their return on assets (ROA) was reported at -.8 percent in March 2007 with a return on equity (ROE) of -221.22 percent.