NBFC Dvara KGFS raises $14.4M from Impact Investment Exchange
The funds will be used to disburse loans to women borrowers through a joint liability group, micro enterprise loans, and loans for water, sanitation, and hygiene.
, a NBFC in India's remote rural areas, has raised $14.4 million via listed non-convertible debentures (NCDs) from Impact Investment Exchange (IIX).
The funds will be used to disburse loans to women borrowers through a joint liability group, micro enterprise loans, and loans for water, sanitation, and hygiene.
IIX provided Dvara with debt capital through the $100-million Women's Livelihood Bond™ 6, an orange and sustainability-labelled bond in the market—the only asset class focusing on gender equity and climate action.
"Dvara KGFS is a mission-oriented financial institution and has been working in the gender-inclusive finance space to empower women and help them become more economically resilient, especially in the country's rural hinterlands. We are delighted to have received this funding from IIX as we continue to bolster our efforts to innovate and enhance our product offerings, while driving value for our customers and stakeholders," said LVLN Murty, MD & CEO, Dvara KGFS.
IIX has invested over $150 million in India through the Women's Livelihood Bond™ 6 (WLB6) series.
Dvara KGFS is a mid-sized NBFC regulated by the with a mission to improve the financial well-being of individuals and micro entrepreneurs in rural India. It operates in Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Punjab, Bihar, Haryana and Odisha, serving over 2.41 million customers through 400+ branches in 110 districts.
Using the IIX Values™ platform, Dvara KGFS plans to impact 87,900 women and girls over WLB6's four-year tenure. The WLB6 issuance aims to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals, specifically SDG 5: Gender Equality and SDG 13: Climate Action, and contribute to SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation.
IIX is a global impact investing movement, focusing on gender equality and climate action. With a presence in 60 countries, it claims to have unlocked $454 million in private sector capital, impacted over 160 million lives, and avoided over 1.9 million metric tonnes of carbon.
Its IIX Values™ tech solution measures the social and environmental impact of investments. In 2022, it launched the Orange Movement™ and created the 'orange bond' to unlock $10 billion in capital markets by 2030, impacting 100 million women, girls, and gender minorities.
Edited by Swetha Kannan