Sagarmala Finance Corporation Limited (SMFCL), India’s first maritime-focused non-banking financial company (NBFC), has formally begun lending operations, sanctioning loans worth about ₹4,300 crore, marking a key step in strengthening the country’s maritime finance ecosystem.
The loan sanctions were approved at the company’s 51st board meeting held on December 30, 2025. With this, SMFCL has entered the maritime lending space in line with its board-approved strategy. The move follows an aggressive roadmap cleared at the company’s annual general meeting, which set an overall borrowing limit of ₹25,000 crore and a lending target of ₹8,000 crore. The sanctioned loans are expected to be disbursed within the current financial year, with SMFCL aiming to build a loan book of ₹8,000 crore in FY26.
Of the sanctioned amount, about ₹4,000 crore has been earmarked for a greenfield port project, underscoring the Centre’s emphasis on port-led development. Dredging Corporation of India has secured ₹150 crore, while Goa Shipyard has been sanctioned ₹110 crore from the same tranche, supporting dredging operations and indigenous shipbuilding.
SMFCL was inaugurated on June 26, 2025, by Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal as a dedicated lender for the maritime sector. The institution was set up to address long-standing financing gaps and provide sector-specific financial solutions to ports, MSMEs, startups and maritime institutions, in line with the Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 and India’s broader blue economy goals.
Commenting on the start of lending operations, Sonowal said the development reflected the government’s resolve to build a robust financial architecture for maritime growth. He said the maritime sector had seen greater policy clarity, institutional reforms and investor confidence under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, enabling specialised institutions like SMFCL to play a catalytic role in infrastructure and enterprise financing.
The company said it expects credit ratings from major agencies shortly, a step that is likely to help optimise borrowing costs and support the scaling up of lending operations. SMFCL has also been designated by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways as the nodal agency for the Maritime Development Fund, which has a total corpus of ₹25,000 crore.
The fund includes a ₹20,000-crore Maritime Investment Fund and a ₹5,000-crore Interest Incentivisation Fund. Under the approved framework, SMFCL will manage the government’s contribution to the Alternative Investment Fund set up for the Maritime Investment Fund and will also channel the Interest Incentivisation Fund, expanding its funding support across maritime segments.
SMFCL said the expected notification of guidelines for the Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme, with an outlay of ₹44,700 crore, is likely to open new investment opportunities in shipbuilding and allied industries. The corporation plans to offer a range of tailored financial products, including short-, medium- and long-term loans, cash-flow support, balance-sheet financing and non-fund-based products, covering the entire maritime value chain.
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