Episode 14: Prof. M S Sriram discusses financial inclusion during COVID times

The IIMB Podcast

In the fourteenth episode of the IIMB Podcast Series, Prof. M S Sriram, Professor in the Public Policy area of IIM Bangalore, shares his insights on financial inclusion in India vis-a-vis the microfinance institutions and other institutions that deal with it in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prof. Sriram talks about the resilience of the sector given its inherent nature of rising and standing up to these shocks, along with the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on the future models of financial inclusion of the poor. The episode touches upon the advent of digital within the MFIs, newer business models for the financial inclusion agenda and the road forward for the sector. Additionally, the episode features insights on reverse migration and the entrepreneurial implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for rural India and how MFIs and other financial inclusion organizations stand to play a role in it.