Mr. Udaya Kumar Hebbar is the MD & CEO of CreditAccess Grameen Limited (CA Grameen). He is a seasoned banker with a career spanning over 36 years in the financial services sector. He has been the architect behind the transformational journey of building the CA Grameen brand as the leading microfinance institution in India and establishing that inclusive finance could succeed with a market-based model.
Under his leadership, the institution successfully weathered multiple business cycles, became publicly listed and a pioneer to undertake an inorganic growth route in the microfinance space by successfully acquiring Madura Microfinance. His vision of the product line concept and offering multiple repayment options to women clients are some of the unique features in the microfinance industry across the world. His focus on maintaining the highest corporate governance standards has enabled business prosperity and sustainability given that CA Grameen is well recognized and accredited with top-notch ratings and awarded numerous prestigious accolades in the financial services industry.
Prior to joining CA Grameen, Mr. Hebbar held various leadership roles across the Operation, Credit, and Business Development profile. He was the Head of Commercial Banking and Payment Operations at Barclays Bank PLC and had successful stints of over a decade each in Corporation Bank and ICICI Bank. He also serves as a Director on the board of Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN) and was the former Chairman of MFIN.
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from the University of Mysore, a Master’s degree in Commerce from Karnatak University, Dharwad and holds a Diploma from Vanderbilt University. He is also a Certificated Associate from the Indian Institute of Bankers.
