In "Spotlight" we will be discussing the opportunities
and challenges that our clients face in various sectors, in
conversation with CXOs. This week, we speak to the CEO and MD of
Agora Microfinance India Ltd., Ms. Meenal Patole. AMIL operates in
the area of urban microfinance in India and is a subsidiary of
Netherlands-based Agora Microfinance NV. We caught up with her to
discuss the state of the microfinance sector and their journey over
the last six years.
Can you take us through Agora's India journey briefly as
well as tell us more about Agora NV? How many customers and what
sort of loan portfolio does Agora currently have?
The genesis of Agora is a small microfinance start-up that I
started in the slums of Mumbai under a non-profit organisation
called Takshashila Development Services. AMIL is born out of this
initial experience and the support of its principal investor Agora
Microfinance NV. Our work is now across Mumbai, Thane and Navi
Mumbai areas, an
