Banks have given Rs 70,000 crore loan to public under PSB 59 Minute Loan Scheme till now
As of January 1, 2024, the government and SIDBI’s 59-minute loan approval initiative for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) has granted 2.48 lakh loans, with 2.29 lakh loans already disbursed. The MSME Ministry’s dashboard data reveals sanctioned loans amounting to Rs 85,980 crore, while Rs 69,240 crore has been disbursed since the program’s commencement in November 2018.
In contrast, by March 1, 2023, the scheme had sanctioned 2.45 lakh loans totaling Rs 83,938 crore, of which 2.26 lakh loans, equivalent to Rs 67,847 crore, had been disbursed.
Under the scheme, MSMEs can receive in-principle bank approval for collateral-free term or working capital loans ranging from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 5 crore through the government’s CGTMSE program. Repayment terms vary from one to fifteen years, with interest rates between 6.8% and 21%, depending on the MSME’s credit and risk profile.
Businesses also have the option to apply for Mudra loans to support various purposes such as acquiring new machinery, upgrading technology, expanding products, purchasing raw materials, and developing infrastructure.
Meanwhile, banks increased their investment in MSMEs under priority sector lending to Rs 23.36 lakh crore in November 2023, marking a 21.9% rise from Rs 19.16 lakh crore in November 2022. October 2023 saw Rs 23.15 lakh crore deployed in MSMEs under priority sector lending.
Regarding the quality of MSME loans, the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) December 2023 Financial Stability Report indicated further improvement in the first half of the current financial year. The MSME gross non-performing assets (GNPA) decreased to 4.7% in September 2023 from 6.8% in March 2023 and 7.7% in September 2022. In March 2022, the GNPA ratio was 9.3%.
