Alliance Micro Finance celebrates 2-year anniversary

By Shiran Illanperuma

Alliance Micro Finance (AMF) recently marked its two-year anniversary with a morale raising celebration, declaring an ambition to exponentially increasing their branch base while continually providing support for staff.

AMF established its first branch within two weeks of its inception. This expanded to 30 branches within the first six months. As of March 2015, the enterprise has 46 branches throughout the country and a presence in every district on the island. Furthermore the company has also produced eight products over the last two years.

Head of Micro Finance and Chief Continuous Improvement Officer Andrew Samuel said that the next step was to aim for a network of 150 branches throughout the island to ensure maximum coverage of rural areas. Furthermore Samuel expressed hope that the company would soon be able to expand to international operations.

The company which scrambled into existence with “little processes and lots of problems,” has achieved a degree of stability according to Samuel. Comparing the past two years to a roller coaster ride, Samuel praised the hard work of executives who built the fledgling department up with limited resources and long working hours, helping the company reach “the highest standards.”

Of AMF’s 250 strong staff, an estimated 40% are trainees according to Samuel. “No other company will risk taking on so many trainees but we have found that trainees work hardest and perform the best,” said Samuel.

Samuel emphasised the career oriented employment at AMF and the company’s dedication to help continue staff education. “We encourage our staff to undertake additional training particularly in English lessons and we are happy to offer leave for study and exams,” said Samuel, who also emphasised the importance of keeping staff happy so that they can produce good work.

As of 1 August, AMF is the highest paying microfinance company in the country. Additionally the company also announced a new incentive based payment scheme that would allow executives to earn an additional Rs. 25,000 and managers an additional Rs. 30,000 on top of their regular salaries if certain criteria were met.

As of March this year, the company has built a portfolio worth Rs. 1.6 b and a cumulative investment of 4.5 b. However, Alliance Finance Deputy Chairman and Managing Director Romani De Silva stated that the end goal of the enterprise was not to generate profits but to serve the poor rural business owners.

Said De Silva: “After over five decades of success with Alliance Finance we felt it was time to give back and in our research saw that microfinance was one of the most sustainable vehicles to empower rural entrepreneurs.”

–Pix by Lasantha Kumara