[Guest Post]: Investing & Handholding – The Aavishkaar Goodwell Way

Editors Note: Guest Blogger Keyzom Ngodup works with Intellecap, a pioneering social venture capital firm focused on making double bottom-line investments in India. In addition to capital and investment support, Intellecap is unique in that they also provide a range of support services that enable social ventures to move from start-up stage into growth mode. You can read Keyzom’s other posts here.

Full Disclosure: In this post, Keyzom writes about Aavishkaar Goodwell — a sister organization to Intellecap.

Karnataka-based microfinance firm Grameen Koota closed its first round of private equity investment when it received INR 92 million (USD 2.3 million) from Aavishkaar Goodwell, an India-focused microfinance development company. Aavishkaar Goodwell will work closely with Grameen Koota`s management to help transform it into a national player that plans to reach out to over 2 million microfinance customers over the next 5 years.

Grameen Koota was started in 1999 by T. Muniswamappa Trust a not-for-profit trust with a clear mission of delivering need-based financing and capacity building services to the poor in a cost-effective and sustainable manner. Guided by its vision to bring mainstream financial services to the poor, Grameen Koota has built a customer base over 140,000 microfinance clients and is one of the leading microfinance players in the region. In October 2007, Grameen Koota successfully completed a transformation into a RBI regulated non-banking financial company (NBFC). Then in December 2007, Grameen Koota was ranked 19th in Forbes Magazine’s Top 50 Microfinance Institutions globally.

Suresh Krishna, MD, Grameen Koota said, “We are delighted to have Aavishkaar Goodwell as an investor in Grameen Koota. With their active support and guidance, we are well poised for the next stage in our growth trajectory. We hope that the financial expertise, business experience and on the ground presence of Aavishkaar Goodwell`s team will help us in fulfilling our objective of scaling up our operations and serving [an] increasing number of poor women in a sustainable manner.”

For Aavishkaar Goodwell, this investment represents a significant step towards building a USD 25 million balanced portfolio of smart capital investments in financial services for the poor in India.