SMFG India Credit Sets Guinness World Record for Largest Cattle Welfare Lesson Across Multiple Venues during Pashu Vikas Day

SMFG India Credit has made history by achieving a Guinness World Record for the ‘Largest Cattle Welfare Lesson (Multiple Venues)’ with 517 participants across 6 venues in India. This milestone was accomplished as part of the company’s 7th edition of Pashu Vikas Day (PVD), the largest one-day cattle care camps across the country. These camps were simultaneously held in 500 locations across 16 states, benefiting around 1,90,000 beneficiaries (1,50,000 cattle and 40,000 cattle owners).

In India, approximately 65-70% of the rural population relies on agriculture or agriculture-related activities for their livelihood. Hence, cattle and livestock play a crucial role in their livelihood generation activities and financial wellbeing. Recognizing this unbreakable bond, SMFG India Credit celebrated the 7th edition of Pashu Vikas Day under the theme ‘Mera Pashu Mera Parivar,’ reinforcing the importance of livestock in the lives of these rural families.

The annual PVD event also saw active participation of more than 6,000 employees, reinforcing the company’s commitment to rural welfare.

Mr. Shantanu Mitra, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of SMFG India Credit, said, “At SMFG India Credit, we remain steadfast in our commitment to championing social initiatives that create a meaningful impact. With a strong Pan-India presence of 1000+ branches, our primary focus is on Tier-2+ locations, with nearly 90% of our branches strategically positioned in these regions. In fact, over the last two years, we have added around 300 branches, all located in Tier-2+ geographies. Our goal is to drive financial inclusion by providing the right products and financial solutions, enabling us to serve communities at every stage of their life cycle.

I would also like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to each of our dedicated employees for their outstanding commitment and hard work in achieving the Guinness World Record for the Largest Cattle Welfare Lesson across multiple venues. It is truly heartening to see that this year’s Pashu Vikas Day not only surpassed expectations in cattle care, but also introduced specialized knowledge sessions across multiple venues in India, which earned us the Guinness World Record."

Mr. Swaminathan Subramanian, Chief Operating Officer of SMFG India Credit, said, "The recognition received from Guinness World Records for holding largest cattle welfare lesson across multiple venues is a proud and defining moment for each and every one at SMFG India Credit.  As a company, we have etched our name in the history books on an international level, and it gives us the belief to continue working towards uplifting the communities we serve at large through innovative and sustainable socio-economic initiatives. Setting a world record on Guinness World Records also reaffirms our dedication to rural welfare and motivates us to continue empowering communities by providing financial access through our financial solutions across their life-cycle.”

Building on its rich legacy of achieving world records, Pashu Vikas Day has previously been recognized by the World Records Union, Limca Book of Records, Best of India Records and World Book of Records for hosting the largest cattle care camps organised in a single day.

About SMFG India Credit Co. Ltd. (Formerly Fullerton India Credit Co. Ltd.)

SMFG India Credit Co. Ltd. (Formerly Fullerton India Credit Co. Ltd.), a leading NBFC - Investment and Credit Company (NBFC-ICC) registered with the Reserve Bank of India and a wholly owned subsidiary of SMFG, has been operating in India since 2007. Together with its subsidiary, SMFG India Home Finance Co. Ltd. (Formerly Fullerton India Home Finance Co. Ltd.) also known as SMFG Grihashakti, the company has established a pan-India presence, across 670+ towns and 70,000+ villages through 1000 branches and 25,000+ employees offering lending products to underserved & unserved retail and small business borrowers. By doing so, it has introduced people to formal credit. SMFG India Credit along with SMFG Grihashakti offers a comprehensive range of lending solutions, including SME financing, commercial vehicle and two-wheeler loans, home loans, home improvement loans, loans against property and shares, personal loans, and rural livelihood advancement loans etc.

About Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG)

SMFG is one of the largest global banking and financial service groups, offering a diverse range of financial services including commercial banking, leasing, securities and consumer finance and is headquartered in Japan. SMFG is listed on the Tokyo and New York (via ADR) Stock Exchanges and has a market capitalization of approximately US$93.5 billion (as of 31^th December 2024). SMFG is one of the global systemically important banks (G-SIBs) and has high credit ratings of A1 by Moody’s Investors Service and A- by Standard & Poor’s.