SKS Microfinance, which is into lending small sums to poor borrowers, has appointed social sector expert Verghese Jacob as its ombudsman to address the rising customer grievances.

The move, which the firm claims is one of its kind in the industry, could be seen as its attempt to address concerns of ethical practices in the business. The ombudsman would be an independent office where a borrower can escalate his problems.

“The appointment of an ombudsman will help us continue pioneering customer protection and grievance redressal initiatives with constant vigil on process, system and regulatory compliance and customer awareness programmes over the years,” said M R Rao, MD and CEO of SKS Microfinance. SKS had earlier said this decision was taken as value was shifting from competition to customer centricity and from growth to profitable growth in microfinance industry.

The micro credit industry has been facing wrath of Andhra Pradesh government owing to their faulty collection practices, which led to suicides too. “The responsibility comes at a time when global attention is riveted on Indian microfinance industry as regulatory clarity and certainty emerges,” said Verghese, who earlier worked with groups like Godrej, IBS, ACCEL, KVK.

trushnaudgirkar@mydigitalfc.com