The teenage daughter of Indian billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla is lending to the poor. The experience of Ananyashree Birla may help her father's quest for a banking permit.
The 18 year old scion's Svatantra Microfin Pvt. offered credit to women in villages in Maharashtra state. The money will be used to purchase sewing machines to start businesses said Birla in an interview. The company charges 20% interest on the offered loans planned to expand to neighboring Gujarat.
The venture will aid the US$40 billion Aditya Birla Group that controls the largest aluminum supply to car manufacturers. It also runs India's biggest cement manufacturer.
The central bank of India has ordered new lenders to open a quarter of their branches in villages. These firms are also required to provide 40% of their loans to farmers and small companies.
According to the data compiled by Bloomberg, billionaire Birla has spent more than US$12 billion in acquisitions. He is seeking to improve group revenue by 63% to US$65 billion by 2015.
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