India
Chandra Shekhar Ghosh is the founder and CEO of Bandhan Bank, a microlending organization. His inspirational story of carving success from humble beginnings is worth telling.
Ghosh was born in 1960 in Agartala, Tripura. His father owned a small sweet shop and their family struggled financially. Ghosh did not let these obstacles hinder his studies.
Ghosh got his degree in statistics from Dhaka University, Bangladesh in 1978. To support himself financially, Ghosh lived in an Ashram and gave tuitions to young students.
In 1985, Ghosh got hired by BRAC and experienced how financial support can change the lives of rural women. He decided to do the same in India and moved back in 1977.
In 2001, Ghosh established Bandhan Bank to lend money to rural women. He borrowed Rs 2 lakh from friends and family to start his organization with only 12 staff members.
Despite several obstacles, the organization became registered by RBI, and in 2015 the bank got a banking license. It is now worth Rs 28,997 crore and has over 6,262 locations.