ESAF Small Finance Bank, a leading small finance bank in India, has crossed another milestone in its digital journey with the adoption of e-signature for micro-loan disbursals.

As on March 31, ESAF Bank has disbursed over 5.27 lakh loans through e-signatures, showcasing its commitment to digital transformation. Through the adoption of e-signatures, ESAF Bank has effectively saved reams of paper, which would have been utilised for of loan disbursement, and documentation involving handwritten signatures, thereby reducing deforestation.

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The Bank currently has a customer base of 65 lakh customers and a transition of 60 per cent of its micro banking customers to using e-signatures, approximately 25 lakh micro banking loans, would have a positive impact on the environment through conservation of natural resources and reduction of carbon footprint.

K Paul Thomas, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, ESAF Bank, said that the transition to e-signatures has improved productivity from an employee perspective and convenience from a customer perspective.

The Bank has also implemented solutions to automate and digitise internal processes. It has implemented an office automation tool that automates and digitises all internal office notes sent for approval. Further, the branch operations department has devised a process to discontinue the printing of eight mandatory reports at branch locations. This measure saves thousands of sheets of paper per day across ESAF Bank’s extensive network of 700 branches.