United Way Mumbai (UWM), Women’s World Banking (WWB) and HSBC India have joined hands with SIDBI and State Rural Livelihood Missions to support 300,000 women in Maharashtra, Assam and Bihar with timely and affordable credit for micro and small enterprises. The initiative centres on SIDBI’s Prayaas Individual Enterprise Scheme (IES), a “credit for women, by women” model that enables individual Self-Help Group (SHG) members to access collateral-free loans of ₹50,000 to ₹2 lakh through women-led community-based organisations (CBOs).
A convening in Mumbai brought together rural livelihood missions, CBOs, development partners and women entrepreneurs to discuss the model’s expansion. SIDBI said IES has been regularised and plans to widen its reach across existing and additional states. According to NRLM data and Women’s World Banking research, around 29.5 million SHG women are linked to model CBOs, including an estimated 7.39 million women entrepreneurs. Of these, about 4.73 million require individual loans of ₹50,000 to ₹5 lakh, representing an estimated ₹65,800 crore lending opportunity.
For Assam, the initiative could strengthen formal credit access for rural women entrepreneurs, particularly those operating through SHGs and community institutions. The focus on collateral-free finance, digital lending and business capabilities could support enterprise expansion and financial inclusion across the state. Joint Secretary-NRLM Amit Shukla said around 3.85 million women-led enterprises are seeking credit in the ₹5 lakh-₹20 lakh segment, representing a ₹12,388 crore opportunity.