Vikram Akula
Vikram Akula | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 7, 1968 |
| Occupation(s) | Financier, entrepreneur |
| Known for | Originator of SKS Microfinance (Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd) |
| Notable work | A Fistful of Rice; Micro-Meltdown |
Vikram Akula (born 7 November 1968) is an American financier and the originator of SKS Microfinance (currently Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd), a microfinance enterprise that offers small loans and insurance products to impoverished women across India. In November 2011, he resigned from his position as SKS Chairperson and was subsequently named Chairperson Emeritus.
Akula also co-founded and serves as a Director at AgSri, a company dedicated to sustainable farming practices that supports small-scale sugarcane cultivators in conserving water resources. Additionally, he holds a directorship at the Bodhi Educational Society, an organization focused on establishing schools for disadvantaged children within India. In recognition of his contributions to financial inclusion, TIME magazine included him in their list of the 100 most influential global figures in 2006.
Presently, Akula chairs VAYA Finserv Private Limited, an Indian enterprise established in 2014 that delivers financial services targeted at low-income populations through partnerships with various banks.
Early life and education
Akula’s father, Akula V. Krishna, was a surgeon who relocated to Schenectady, New York, where Akula completed his schooling. He graduated from Niskayuna High School in 1986 and earned a dual honors degree in philosophy and English from Tufts University in 1990. He pursued an M.A. in International Relations at Yale University and was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to conduct microfinance research in India during 1994–95. Akula obtained his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Chicago in 2004. Between 2019 and 2020, he was honored as a Distinguished Career Fellow at Stanford University.
Career
Following his graduation from Tufts, Akula briefly engaged with the Deccan Development Society, a grassroots rural NGO in India, before joining the Worldwatch Institute in Washington D.C., where he conducted research on poverty alleviation and sustainable development. During his Fulbright tenure, he contributed to managing the microfinance initiatives of the Deccan Development Society. Recognizing the constraints of non-profit microfinance models, Akula championed a market-driven strategy detailed in his 2010 publication, A Fistful of Rice; My Unexpected Quest to End Poverty Through Profitability.
SKS Microfinance
While working on his doctoral studies, Akula formulated a business strategy for a profit-oriented microfinance organization and established Swayam Krishi Sangam (SKS) in India in 1997. Initially operating as a non-profit entity, SKS transitioned into the for-profit SKS Microfinance in 2005. The firm secured substantial equity financing: $11.5 million led by Sequoia Capital in 2007; $75 million raised in 2008—then the largest capital infusion for a microfinance institution; alongside investments from Infosys founder Narayan Murthy and Bajaj Allianz, marking the first insurance sector investment into microfinance.
In August 2010, SKS Microfinance launched its initial public offering on the Bombay Stock Exchange, generating $350 million with demand exceeding supply by fourteen times. Prominent anchor investors included George Soros. To date, the company has issued over $15 billion in microloans.
Akula resigned as Executive Chairperson on 23 November 2011 and formally stepped down from his promoter role on 3 May 2014.
Influences
When SKS was established, Akula drew inspiration from Muhammad Yunus, the Nobel Prize winner and founder of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, who is recognized as a trailblazer in the microfinance sector. During a 2010 discussion at the Clinton Global Initiative, Akula emphasized that microfinance institutions (MFIs) must pursue public listings to secure the substantial capital necessary to support billions of impoverished borrowers worldwide.
Controversy
In 2010, the government of Andhra Pradesh held SKS and several other microfinance organizations responsible for a series of suicides among heavily indebted individuals. Two separate inquiries—one initiated by SKS and another by an industry association—revealed that SKS staff engaged in unlawful debt collection tactics, including harassment and coercion.
An investigation by the Associated Press uncovered a significant change in SKS’s strategy following Akula’s resignation as CEO in 2008. New stakeholders such as Sandstone Capital and Sequoia Capital introduced financial acumen and advocated for rapid loan portfolio expansion by transferring loan risks to banks, which assumed default liabilities. This approach facilitated swift lending growth, exemplified by the "Incentives Galore" sales initiative launched near the end of 2009 ahead of the IPO. Akula reportedly disapproved of this methodology and suggested a $10 million client financial counseling program in 2011 aimed at preventing excessive borrower indebtedness; however, this plan was never executed.
Akula elaborates on these issues and SKS’s development in his book, Micro-Meltdown: The Inside Story of the Rise, Fall, and Resurgence of the World's Most Valuable Microlender.
Awards and recognition
Akula has received numerous honors acknowledging his leadership at SKS, including:
- Inclusion in Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People list, 2006
- Recognition as Social Entrepreneur of the Year in India, 2006
- Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year awards in India (Start-up category, 2006; Business Transformation category, 2010)
- Listing among India Today’s 50 Most Powerful People, 2009
- Nomination for Forbes India Person of the Year, 2009
- Recipient of the Godfrey Phillips National Bravery Award, 2010
- Designation as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, 2008
- Fellowship with Echoing Green for Poverty Alleviation Economic Development, 1998
- Honored as Karmaveer Puraskaar Noble Laureate during 2006–2007