Aadhar Housing Finance working on two-way co-lending arrangements

Rishi Anand, MD & CEO, Aadhar Housing Finance

Aadhar Housing Finance Ltd (AHFL) is working on two-way co-lending arrangements, whereby it will help large banks build their affordable housing loan portfolio, which will qualify as priority sector lending under RBI norms, by originating them and also expand its own portfolio in the hinterland by funding loans sourced by fintechs.The company, which specialises in providing affordable housing solutions to economically weaker section and low income group, particularly in semi-urban and rural areas across India, has entered into co-lending partnerships with two public sector banks to leverage its distribution network and widen funding sources, according to Rishi Anand, MD & CEO of AHFL.Also in the works are tie-ups with fintechs that are involved in the digital lending space. The company’s assets under management (AUM) were up 18 per cent y-o-y and stood at ₹31,364 crore as at June-end 2026.Growing middle class“With 65 per cent of India’s population under 35 and a growing middle class, the demand for first-time home ownership is a multi-decade story....With 60 crore people expected to reside in urban centres by 2036, low-income housing demand will only intensify.“We are uniquely equipped with expertise in informal-income assessment, allowing us to extend credit to the self-employed segment,” said Anand in his message to shareholders.Growth strategiesThe Company’s key strategies for growth include plans to achieve deeper penetration in key states and to classify the branch network into urban and emerging categories to focus on different customer requirements in urban and semi urban locations, according to the annual report. It currently has 628 branches spread across 22 States and Union Territories.Crisil Ratings, in a report last year, observed that RBI’s revised directions on co-lending, released on August 6, 2025, is a win-win for NBFCs and banks alike, as it allows sharing of risk and rewards from loans they jointly extend to borrowers.“For NBFCs, it enables access to bank funding as well as diversification in resource mobilisation avenues. For banks, on the other hand, it provides optimal access to harder-to-reach customers and geographies,” according to the report.Each regulated entity under a co-lending arrangement is required to retain a minimum 10 per cent of the individual loans on its books.Published on August 10, 2026