The disbursement comes amid the launch of new lending vertical by SBI for micro, small business, agriculture and allied activities.

Credit and Finance for MSMEs: India’s biggest lender State Bank of India disbursed 22,000 loans worth Rs 3,000 crore to MSMEs on Monday under the Rs 3 lakh crore collateral-free loan scheme. “We are very bullish on this scheme,” SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar told in his address at the industry association CII’s 125^th anniversary. The credit guarantee by the government on loans to MSMEs makes way for a capital infusion of Rs 30,000 crore into the banking system, he added. The emergency credit scheme was announced by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman last month to help revive Covid-hit businesses and MSMEs as part of the Rs 20 lakh crore economic package announced by PM Modi.

MSMEs accounts having up to Rs 25 crore in outstanding credit as on February 29, 2020 less than or equal to 60 days past due as on the date along with up to Rs 100 crore in turnover can apply for the collateral-free credit. 100 per cent guarantee cover will be given by the government to banks and NBFCs lending to eligible MSMEs.

Also read: SBI doubles down on lending to small businesses in hinterland; launches vertical to offer micro credit

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday had said that the public sector banks have sanctioned loans worth Rs 10,361.75 crore while Rs 3,892.78 crore has been disbursed to MSMEs.

The disbursement comes amid the launch of new lending vertical by SBI for micro, small business, agriculture and allied activities. The new vertical — Financial Inclusion & Micro Market (FI&MM) will offer microloans to small businesses and farmers in the rural and semi-urban regions. The bank will reach out to the potential lendees through more than 8,000 branches in rural and semi-urban areas. “The new FI&MM Vertical will provide an opportunity to serve the small business, Agri & allied segment so that they can run their businesses smoothly, especially in the current times of uncertainty,” Kumar had said in a statement.

The government had restructured 6 lakh MSME accounts till March 21, 2020, and is looking to restructure another 25 lakh accounts by end of this year, MSME Minister Nitin Gadkari had said during a video conference with the members of the Indore Management Association last month.