HDFC Bank’s MSME book grew 30% YOY to cross the ₹2-lakh-crore-mark as of December-end, boosted majorly by the ECLG scheme under which it disbursed over ₹23,000 crores over pandemic.

According to the Bank, the growth is driven by a renewed push towards customers in semi-urban and rural areas. In December 2019, the HDFC’s MSME book stood at ₹1.4-lakh crore. This grew by over 60,000 crores, or 30%, to ₹2,01,758 crore by the December 2020 quarter, giving it a 10.6% share system-wide MSME lending, becoming the second-largest lender in this segment after State Bank of India. Sumant Rampal, Senior Executive Vice-President, Business Banking and Healthcare Finance, spoke that the MSME lending is back to pre-pandemic levels, with loan book growing at 30% year-on to ₹2,01,758 crore as of December 2020 quarter. According to him, the ECLG scheme was the biggest driver, boosting the loan book by ₹23,000 crores disbursed to around 1,10,000 MSME customers, and the renewed push towards customers in semi-urban and rural areas also helped the bank during the pandemic, leading to incremental loan growth of over ₹60,000 crores, adding most of the ECLG disbursals took place only in the past three to four months.

According to him, at 30% loan growth, the MSME book is the fastest-growing vertical for HDFC and this is its commitment to empowering the MSME sector which accounts for about 30% of GDP and the largest employer.