Press release
ASA International Group plc March 2024 quarterly business update
London, United Kingdom, 23 April 2024 - ASA International, ('ASA International', the 'Company' or the 'Group'), one of the world's largest international microfinance institutions, today provides the following update on its business operations as of 31 March 2024.
· The Group's Gross OLP increased to USD 380 million (0.9% higher than in December 2023 and 13% higher than at 31 March 2023).
· All operating subsidiaries, achieved collection efficiency of more than 90% with 12 countries achieving more than 95%.
· Collection efficiency in India improved to 98% in March 2024 compared to 97% in December 2023. The intentional decrease in our own portfolio in India has slowed down while the business continues to grow the off-book BC portfolio in India. This approach is designed to help India retain good clients.
· PAR>30 for the Group, including off-book loans and excluding loans overdue for more than 365 days, improved to 1.8% in March 2024 (December 2023: 2.0%).
· Excluding all loans which have been overdue for more than 180 days and, as a result, have been fully provided for, PAR>30 remained stable at 1.1% in March 2024 (December 2023: 1.1%).
· Disbursements as a percentage of collections exceeded 100% in ten countries.
Collection efficiency until 31 March 2024(1)
| Countries | Oct/23 | Nov/23 | Dec/23 | Jan/24 | Feb/24 | Mar/24 |
| Pakistan | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 99% |
| India (total) | 95% | 95% | 97% | 95% | 97% | 98% |
| Sri Lanka | 95% | 96% | 96% | 96% | 96% | 96% |
| The Philippines | 98% | 98% | 98% | 98% | 98% | 99% |
| Myanmar | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Ghana | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Nigeria | 95% | 95% | 95% | 94% | 94% | 93% |
| Sierra Leone | 98% | 98% | 99% | 97% | 97% | 97% |
| Tanzania | 100% | 100% | 100% | 99% | 99% | 99% |
| Kenya | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Uganda | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Rwanda | 97% | 96% | 96% | 96% | 95% | 95% |
| Zambia | 99% | 99% | 99% | 99% | 99% | 99% |
(1) Collection efficiency refers to actual collections from clients divided by realisable collections for the period. It is calculated as follows: the sum of actual regular collections, actual overdue collections and actual advance payments divided by the sum of realisable regular collections, actual overdue collections
and actual advance payments. Under this definition collection efficiency cannot exceed 100%.
· Collection efficiency remained stable at high levels in most of our operating countries during March 2024 compared to December 2023.
· Collection efficiency in India improved to 98% in March 2024 compared to 97% in December 2023.
· Although market conditions in both Myanmar and Nigeria remained challenging, collection efficiency remained largely stable.
Loan portfolio quality up to and including March 2024(2, 3)
| | Gross OLP (in USDm) | Non-overdue loans | PAR>30 less PAR>180 | ||||||
|
| Jan-24 | Feb-24 | Mar-24 | Jan-24 | Feb-24 | Mar-24 | Jan-24 | Feb-24 | Mar-24 |
| Pakistan | 70 | 72 | 73 | 99.6% | 98.9% | 98.7% | 0.3% | 0.4% | 0.4% |
| India (total) | 47 | 49 | 50 | 81.4% | 94.8% | 95.2% | 2.5% | 1.9% | 1.8% |
| Sri Lanka | 4 | 5 | 5 | 92.6% | 92.8% | 92.2% | 3.2% | 2.9% | 3.3% |
| The Philippines | 55 | 56 | 57 | 95.3% | 95.0% | 94.9% | 2.5% | 2.4% | 2.2% |
| Myanmar | 22 | 23 | 21 | 92.9% | 93.1% | 99.7% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| Ghana | 48 | 48 | 45 | 99.6% | 99.6% | 99.5% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Nigeria | 15 | 9 | 9 | 80.9% | 79.1% | 77.6% | 4.4% | 5.3% | 5.9% |
| Sierra Leone | 5 | 5 | 5 | 92.5% | 92.2% | 92.4% | 1.8% | 2.1% | 2.3% |
| Tanzania | 65 | 65 | 66 | 98.6% | 98.4% | 98.3% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.7% |
| Kenya | 21 | 25 | 29 | 99.6% | 99.6% | 99.6% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Uganda | 13 | 13 | 13 | 98.8% | 98.9% | 98.9% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| Rwanda | 4 | 4 | 4 | 90.2% | 89.1% | 89.0% | 3.6% | 4.4% | 4.6% |
| Zambia | 3 | 3 | 3 | 95.7% | 95.3% | 95.2% | 0.9% | 1.2% | 1.3% |
| Group | 373 | 375 | 380 | 95.0% | 96.7% | 97.0% | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.1% |
|
| PAR>30 | PAR>90 | PAR>180 | ||||||
|
| Jan-24 | Feb-24 | Mar-24 | Jan-24 | Feb-24 | Mar-24 | Jan-24 | Feb-24 | Mar-24 |
| Pakistan | 0.3% | 0.5% | 0.8% | 0.2% | 0.3% | 0.7% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.5% |
| India (total) | 3.1% | 2.2% | 2.1% | 1.6% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 0.6% | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| Sri Lanka | 4.9% | 4.6% | 4.9% | 3.2% | 3.0% | 3.0% | 1.8% | 1.6% | 1.6% |
| The Philippines | 3.8% | 3.8% | 3.8% | 2.8% | 3.0% | 3.0% | 1.3% | 1.5% | 1.6% |
| Myanmar | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Ghana | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| Nigeria | 12.7% | 13.1% | 12.8% | 10.4% | 10.1% | 9.1% | 8.3% | 7.9% | 6.9% |
| Sierra Leone | 4.3% | 4.3% | 4.2% | 3.4% | 3.1% | 2.8% | 2.5% | 2.2% | 1.9% |
| Tanzania | 1.0% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% |
| Kenya | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.1% |
| Uganda | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.5% |
| Rwanda | 7.1% | 7.7% | 7.8% | 5.3% | 5.5% | 5.5% | 3.6% | 3.4% | 3.2% |
| Zambia | 2.5% | 2.5% | 2.6% | 2.1% | 1.9% | 1.8% | 1.5% | 1.3% | 1.3% |
| Group | 2.0% | 1.7% | 1.8% | 1.4% | 1.2% | 1.3% | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.8% |
(2) PAR>x is the percentage of outstanding customer loans with at least one instalment payment overdue x days, excluding loans more than 365 days overdue, to Gross OLP including off-book loans. Loans overdue more than 365 days now comprise 0.6% of the Gross OLP.
(3) The table "PAR>30 less PAR>180" shows the percentage of outstanding client loans with a PAR greater than 30 days, less those loans which have been fully provided for.
· Gross OLP in India further increased to USD 50 million (9% higher than in December 2023 and 13% higher than in March 2023).
· PAR>30 for the Group, including off-book loans and excluding loans overdue for more than 365 days, improved to 1.8% in March 2024.
· The off-book portfolio in India consists of IDFC of USD 11.0 million, Fincare of USD 3.9 million and the Jana portfolio of USD 29.6 million. The off-book DA portfolio amounts to USD 1.0 million.
Disbursements vs collections of loans until 31 March 2024(4)
| Countries | Oct/23 | Nov/23 | Dec/23 | Jan/24 | Feb/24 | Mar/24 |
| Pakistan | 95% | 96% | 98% | 106% | 79% | 84% |
| India (total) | 64% | 123% | 121% | 127% | 122% | 118% |
| Sri Lanka | 109% | 102% | 112% | 91% | 133% | 119% |
| The Philippines | 103% | 105% | 107% | 103% | 109% | 107% |
| Myanmar | 124% | 116% | 117% | 109% | 107% | 113% |
| Ghana | 109% | 127% | 118% | 86% | 105% | 98% |
| Nigeria | 120% | 135% | 96% | 60% | 77% | 73% |
| Sierra Leone | 113% | 98% | 80% | 96% | 119% | 130% |
| Tanzania | 113% | 115% | 117% | 101% | 102% | 109% |
| Kenya | 113% | 120% | 85% | 118% | 115% | 115% |
| Uganda | 115% | 115% | 96% | 93% | 109% | 110% |
| Rwanda | 116% | 120% | 118% | 77% | 96% | 110% |
| Zambia | 124% | 134% | 115% | 81% | 100% | 110% |
(4) Disbursements vs collections refers to actual loan disbursements made to clients divided by total amounts collected from clients in the period.
· Disbursements as a percentage of collections exceeded 100% in ten countries.
· The decreased percentages in Pakistan during February and March 2024 were due to elections and the migration to the new Core Banking System.
· The decreased percentages in Nigeria during January to March 2024 were due to the challenging market condition.
Development of Clients and Outstanding Loan Portfolio until 31 March 2024
| | Clients (in thousands) | Delta | Gross OLP (in USDm) | Delta | |||||||
| Countries | Mar/23 | Feb/24 | Mar/24 | Mar/23-Mar/24 | Feb/24-Mar/24 | Mar/23 | Feb/24 | Mar/24 | Mar/23-Mar/24 USD | Mar/23-Mar/24 CC(5) | Feb/24- |
| Pakistan | 601 | 625 | 621 | 3% | -1% | 64 | 72 | 73 | 14% | 12% | 1% |
| India (total) | 224 | 178 | 180 | -20% | 1% | 44 | 49 | 50 | 13% | 14% | 2% |
| Sri Lanka | 45 | 44 | 45 | -1% | 1% | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7% | -2% | 6% |
| The Philippines | 326 | 336 | 341 | 4% | 1.5% | 52 | 56 | 57 | 10% | 13% | 2% |
| Myanmar | 98 | 115 | 117 | 19% | 2% | 18 | 23 | 21 | 21% | 21% | -5% |
| Ghana | 180 | 198 | 194 | 8% | -2% | 35 | 48 | 45 | 29% | 46% | -5% |
| Nigeria | 174 | 173 | 165 | -5% | -5% | 24 | 9 | 9 | -62% | 15% | 8% |
| Sierra Leone | 36 | 38 | 38 | 6% | 0% | 4 | 5 | 5 | 25% | -100% | 7% |
| Tanzania | 221 | 251 | 253 | 14% | 1% | 53 | 65 | 66 | 24% | 36% | 1% |
| Kenya | 159 | 210 | 215 | 35% | 3% | 18 | 25 | 29 | 56% | 56% | 16% |
| Uganda | 105 | 123 | 125 | 19% | 1% | 11 | 13 | 13 | 15% | 19% | 4% |
| Rwanda | 20 | 20 | 20 | 3% | 0% | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3% | 20% | 2% |
| Zambia | 21 | 26 | 26 | 22% | 2% | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10% | 30% | -5% |
| Group | 2,209 | 2,338 | 2,339 | 6% | 0.04% | 335 | 375 | 380 | 13% | 21.9% | 1.4% |
(5) Constant currency ('CC') implies conversion of local currency results to USD with the exchange rate from the beginning of the period.
· The Group's Gross OLP improved to USD 380 million (0.9% higher than in December 2023 and 13% higher than in March 2023).
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Enquiries:
ASA International Group plc
Investor Relations
Mischa Assink ir@asa-international.com
About ASA International Group plc
ASA International Group plc (ASAI: LN) is one of the world's largest international microfinance institutions, with a strong commitment to financial inclusion and socioeconomic progress. The company provides small, socially responsible loans to low-income, financially underserved entrepreneurs, predominantly women, across South Asia, South East Asia, West and East Africa.
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