Axis Bank and Piramal Capital and Housing Finance Ltd (PCHFL) have entered into a partnership for co-lending in the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and home loan segments.

By combining their strengths, the lenders expect to address the credit gap faced by MSMEs and home loan borrowers by utilising their extensive customer reach, rigorous credit underwriting and assessment tools, PCHFL said in a statement.

Through this partnership, both lenders will offer loans to middle- and low-income borrowers with a focus on rural and semi-urban regions, as per the statement.

The collaboration aims to cater to customers in the unorganised sector, including self-employed or salaried borrowers who have limited access to credit due to lack of sufficient income proofs.

“The partnership will leverage the deep financial expertise of Axis Bank, and loan processing technology of Piramal Finance, to assess the credit profile of borrowers and provide them loans at competitive interest rates through a network of 490 branches of Piramal Finance.

“This partnership will cater to potential customers who are either new to credit or untapped by larger institutions and build a multi-product loan book,” PCHFL said.

Jairam Sridharan, Managing Director, PCHFL, said, “By leveraging Axis Bank’s expansive network and Piramal Finance’s deep reach, we are well positioned to penetrate deeper geographies across Bharat. Together, our shared goal is to enhance accessibility to formal credit, drive growth, and realizse the aspirations of customers across Bharat.”