(Mohan Bhulani, NTI) : Born in a small village located 40 kilometers from Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand, Govind Singh’s journey to becoming the founder of Utkarsh Small Finance Bank is nothing short of inspirational. His childhood was marked by hardship, including the daily 7-kilometer walk to his nearest school. Despite teaching students in a modest 18x6x6-foot house, young Govind always nurtured a desire to do something impactful.
After completing his Bachelor’s degree in Commerce (BCom), Govind began his banking career as a probationary officer at the State Bank of Patiala. Five years later, in 1988, he moved on to Surya Fincap, where he was tasked with setting up their Mumbai office. His career path also took him through stints at the Bank of Indonesia and UTI Bank before a pivotal moment in 2000 when he joined ICICI Bank.
At ICICI Bank, Govind Singh quickly made his mark. By 2006, he was heading the microfinance department and made history by introducing India’s first business correspondent model. This allowed rural villagers to carry out banking transactions without needing to physically visit a bank—a breakthrough in the Indian financial sector.
However, Govind noticed a glaring gap in the industry: around 400 million people in India still lacked access to microloans, particularly amounts as small as ₹10,000. He realized that the financial sector needed greater access before it could fully benefit from technological advancements. Determined to address this, Govind made the bold decision to leave his lucrative job at ICICI Bank and embark on a new venture in Varanasi.
In 2009, he founded Utkarsh Microfinance with a simple yet powerful idea: provide financial services to communities where the need is pressing, but access to such services is limited. Targeting the underserved markets of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar—states that housed around 40% of India’s below-poverty-line population—Govind secured ₹6 crore in funding from Aavishkar Goodwell, a microfinance institution.
With this initial capital, Utkarsh Microfinance quickly scaled. Within its first year, the company had expanded to four branches, serving 8,000 customers with an outstanding portfolio of ₹6.3 crore. However, Govind soon encountered another hurdle. A survey revealed that around 373 million small business owners were unable to secure loans ranging from ₹50,000 to ₹3 lakh. Once again, he set out to solve this problem.
In 2012, Utkarsh introduced the Micro Enterprise Loan (MEL) scheme called “Samridhi.” The scheme provided unsecured loans to semi-urban and rural customers in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, with approvals happening within just three days. By 2013, Utkarsh had scaled to 300,000 customers and an impressive loan book of ₹448 crore.
One key factor behind Utkarsh’s early success was its zero-default rate. This was achieved by only offering loans to joint liability groups, where 4 to 10 villagers guaranteed each other’s repayment. In 2016, Utkarsh expanded into the housing loan segment, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) licensed it as a Small Finance Bank. On January 23, 2017, Utkarsh Small Finance Bank was officially born.
In the years that followed, Utkarsh rapidly diversified its offerings, entering the markets for personal loans, commercial vehicle loans, and construction equipment loans. By 2017, its loan book had grown to ₹3,200 crore, serving 1.5 million customers. But the biggest milestone was yet to come.
By July 2023, Utkarsh had scaled to ₹14,000 crore in loans and amassed deposits worth ₹19,496 crore. The company went public, and its ₹500 crore Initial Public Offering (IPO) was oversubscribed a staggering 102 times—a clear testament to the trust the financial market had in the bank’s vision and growth potential.
As of 2023, Utkarsh Small Finance Bank boasts a loan portfolio of ₹18,000 crore, deposits totaling ₹17,000 crore, and reported its highest-ever revenue of ₹3,579 crore, with a profit of ₹452 crore. The bank now operates 888 branches and 320 ATMs across 26 states and has a valuation of ₹4,708 crore.
Govind Singh’s journey from a small village in Uttarakhand to building India’s fourth-largest small finance bank is a story of resilience, innovation, and a deep commitment to financial inclusion. His story inspires millions, proving that no matter how humble your beginnings, it’s possible to build something truly transformative.
