To fuel the growth of women-led businesses in India and bring women to the forefront of economic activities, leading financial institutions (both public and private) launched financial products, i.e., loan for women entrepreneurs in India. Read on to know the top 5 business loan available in India for women entrepreneurs.
- Cent Kalyani Scheme
Offered by the Central Bank of India, Cent Kalyani Scheme extends a business loan to women entrepreneurs who are willing to start new businesses or expand or alter the existing one.
Features
- Eligible applicants – Women associated with rural and cottage industries, MSMEs, entrepreneurs, females working in retailing, farming, government-backed organisations are eligible to avail of this loan.
- Purpose – This loan can be availed to purchase plant and machinery equipment to fund working capital expenditure.
- Mortgage fee – Women entrepreneurs can avail of this loan without pledging any collateral or the need of a third-party guarantor.
- Charges – No processing fees are required to avail such a loan under the Cent Kalyani Scheme.
- Loan amount– A women entrepreneur can avail loan up to Rs.1 crore under this scheme.
- Stree Shakti Package
Stree Shakti Package or Stree Shakti Tractor loan is another type of credit provided by the State Bank of India.
Features
- Eligible applicants– Women entrepreneurs having a minimum 50% share in a firm or business ownership. Women should be part of the state agencies that run the Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP).
- Mortgage fee & Loan amount – No collateral is required to avail loan up to Rs. 5 lakh.
- Repayment tenor– Up to 36 months with 1 month moratorium period.
Additional features- Women entrepreneurs can avail of interest reduction by 50% above Rs. 2 lakh of the loan amount.
- Shringaar and Annapurna
Bhartiya Mahila Bank (BMB) offers business loans for women, namely Shringaar and Annapurna, to boost finances. BMB offers a collateral-free loan for woman entrepreneur in India under CGTMSE (Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises) scheme.
Shringaar loan – Women entrepreneurs can avail business loan for beauty parlour, spa and salon.
Features
- Eligible applicant – The age of women entrepreneurs must range between 20-60 years.
- Repayment tenor – Up to 7 years
- Loan amount – Up to Rs.10 crore.
Annapurna loan– Women entrepreneurs can avail Annapurna loan for food catering.
Features
- Eligible applicant– To avail of Annapurna loan, women must be 18 -60 years of age.
- Repayment tenor- Up to 3 years
- Loan amount- Up to Rs.50000
- Mudra Yojana
Women entrepreneurs can avail a loan under the Mudra Yojana scheme to set up or expand business enterprises in the manufacturing, trading and service sector.
Features
- Eligible applicants – All individuals, including women
- Processing fees – Shishu & Kishore (Nil), Tarun- 0.50%+taxes
- Loan amount– Loan under Mudra Yojana offered under three categories.
- Shishu– Up to Rs.50000
- Kishore-Rs.50001 – Rs.5 lakh
- Tarun– Rs.500001 – Rs.10 lakh
- Mahila Udyam Nidhi Scheme
Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and Punjab National Bank offers loan under Mahila Udyam Nidhi Scheme to women.
Features
- Eligible applicants– Women entrepreneurs involved in small industries.
- Repayment tenor – Up to 10 years
- Loan amount – Up to Rs.10 lakh
The government, along with leading financial institutions, offer great source of financing for women business owners. However, factors like non-availability of required documents, delay in processing time, and stringent eligibility criteria have barred women, entrepreneurs, to avail of the advantages of loan for women entrepreneurs in India.
However, renowned financial institutions like Bajaj Finserv offers quick unsecured business loan for women entrepreneurs up to Rs.45 lakh against minimal documents and flexible eligibility.
The NBFC even offers pre-approved loans to ensure a hassle-free loan availing experience. These offers are available for financial products like business loans, personal loans etc. Individuals can check their pre-approved offers by providing basic information like name and contact details.
A recent study shows business run by women entrepreneurs in India is likely to grow up to 90% in five years compared to US and UK with a range of 50% and 24% respectively. Though the study, surveyed women entrepreneurs across 13 states and Union territories (UTs), shows tremendous growth, the actual participation of women in economic activities in India still hovers around the lower part of the chart.
This article talks about the top 5 business loans for women entrepreneurs in India. However, several other business loans offered by the government and other financial institutions aim to increase the percentage of women-led business in India and strengthen their societal and economical standing.
