SIDBI Aims To Broaden Access To Digital Express Loan For MSMEs

New Delhi, Jun 15 (KNN) The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has announced plans to expand the accessibility of its digital Express Loan product for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

This was revealed by SIDBI Deputy Managing Director Sudatta Mandal during the Financial Awareness conclave organised by the Bengal Chamber of Commerce on Friday.

Mandal highlighted that under the Express Loan scheme, loan applications are processed and sanctioned within a rapid timeframe of 10 minutes.

Initially introduced for the procurement of machinery with a maximum loan amount of Rs 1 crore, the scheme has since increased the ticket size to Rs 3 crore for existing MSME customers.

“As the Express Loan portfolio matures, we aim to extend this digital lending facility across all our product offerings,” Mandal stated, underscoring SIDBI’s commitment to streamlining credit access for the MSME sector.

Addressing the challenges faced by MSMEs in securing favourable credit ratings, Mandal emphasised the need for a more calibrated assessment of creditworthiness.

He noted that the methodologies employed by leading credit rating agencies often exhibit an inherent bias against MSMEs due to their smaller scale of operations, resulting in higher borrowing costs for this crucial segment of the economy.