Rang De, an Indian microfinance nonprofit organization, offers an online microlending platform to provide loans to poverty-level microentrepreneurs in India. The company was started by Ram NK and Smita Ram in 2006, and its online platform purports to connect individuals who are interested in providing microloans directly with borrowers. The company partners with microfinance institutions (MFIs) to screen potential borrowers, whose profiles are then posted online. The “social investors” register on the website and choose which borrowers they would like to invest in and for what amount, and the partner MFIs disburse the funds. The minimum investment is INR 100 (USD 2).
Rang De provides microloans with an 8.5 percent interest rate. Of the 8.5 percent interest, the field partners are paid 5 percent, the social investors receive a 2 percent return and Rang De retains 1.5 percent, of which one-third of this amount is set aside as a contingency fund. Rang De loans only to members of joint liability groups in an effort to ensure timely repayments. Rang De currently reports a repayment rate of 99 percent.
The company is funded and supported by CSO Partners, an Indian civic organization, and ICICI Foundation, which was founded by the ICICI Group, an Indian financial services company with total assets of USD 75 billion at March 31, 2009.
By Jennifer Shevock, Research Associate
About Rang De:
Rang De is an Indian nonprofit microlending online platform whose mission is to make microcredit accessible to low-income households by engaging social investors and by lowering loan interest rates through innovative means.
About CSO Partners:
CSO Partners is an organization in India whose mission is to create positive social change by strengthening civil society organizations and fostering active collaborations with corporate groups, governments and individuals. By engaging at various levels with these groups, CSO Partners seeks to mobilize resources and enhance the effectiveness of civil society organizations (CSOs), facilitate support for CSOs and promote their accountability and transparency.
About ICICI Foundation:
ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth (ICICI Foundation) was founded by the ICICI Group in 2008 to give focus to its efforts to promote inclusive economic growth amongst low-income Indian households. The ICICI Group is a financial services company in India with total assets of USD 75 billion at March 31, 2009.
Sources and Additional Resources:
“Rang De: India’s first online platform for micro-credit” June 27, 2010. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/features/the-sunday-et/people/Rang-De-Indias-first-online-platform-for-micro-credit/articleshow/6096511.cms
MicroCapital Universe: Rang De: http://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Rang+De
MicroCapital Universe: CSO Partners: https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=CSO+Partners
MicroCapital Universe: About ICICI Foundation: https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=ICICI+Foundation
Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at: https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/
Similar Posts:
- SPECIAL REPORT: European Microfinance Week 2023 Opens With Action Group Meetings, Including Investors Sharing Strategies for Measuring Social Performance #EMW2023
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Cerise+SPTF Updates Social Performance Indicators (SPI) Online Platform
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation Loans $3.2m to Faten for Microfinance in Palestine
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Abler Nordic Leads $10m Equity, Debt Investment Round for Ergos, Agtech Offering Crop Storage in India
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mi-Bospo of Bosnia and Herzegovina Borrowing $2.2m from Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation for Microfinance Lending
