Mumbai, 6th March 2026: AU Small Finance Bank (AU SFB), India’s largest Small Finance Bank and the first in over a decade to receive in-principle approval to transition into a Universal Bank, announced a significant milestone on the occasion of International Women’s Day. The Bank’s women-focused programme, ‘M’ has crossed 30,000 women customers since its launch in November 2025 (an average of 7,500 women customers per month), reflecting the growing participation of women in formal and digital-first banking across India.

Designed for the woman who effortlessly pursues new ambitions and lives life in all its dimensions, ‘M’ is for the ‘M’ in every woman – the Me and the Myself, celebrating her individuality, her choices, and the grace with which she defines her own journey. In November 2025, AU SFB launched ‘M’, a distinctive women’s banking proposition offering personalised privileges, curated financial solutions, and exclusive lifestyle experiences tailored to their unique needs and aspirations.

Currently, AU SFB’s ‘M’ continues to see strong adoption from homemakers and self-employed women, segments historically under-represented in formal finance but now displaying greater financial discipline and deeper engagement. The self-employed cohort has emerged as the most financially active, with an average ticket size higher than other customer cohorts within the ‘M’ community.

While customers are joining from across the country, the fastest growth is being recorded in:
Jaipur, Surat, Ahmedabad, Jodhpur and key districts of Haryana. This reflects rising aspirations among women in high-growth regional markets and a preference for simple, accessible and wellbeing-focused financial solutions.

A key differentiator of ‘M’ is an exclusive 0.2% lower interest rate on both Wheels Loans and Micro Business Loans, offering better affordability and enhanced value. This insight-led benefit strengthens support for mobility, micro-entrepreneurship and long-term financial empowerment.

Digital behaviour under ‘M’ continues to deepen: 60% of women customers actively use mobile banking; and 40% transact regularly through UPI. Women enrolled under ‘M’ are also showing early signs of interest in structured, long-term planning tools. The ‘M’ Investment Combo on the AU0101 app is helping women explore more goal-linked financial options and gradually diversify beyond traditional savings patterns.

International Women’s Day Lifestyle Benefits

To celebrate International Women’s Day, AU SFB has curated exclusive lifestyle benefits across beauty, personal care, fashion, wellness, jewellery, and gifting. These offers are available to AU Debit Card holders under the ‘M’ banking programme, with most valid until March 31, 2026. The curated benefits further strengthen the ‘M’ proposition by delivering meaningful value aligned with women’s evolving lifestyle needs and financial preferences.

Uttam Tibrewal, ED & Deputy CEO, AU Small Finance Bank, said, “Women today are engaging with banking in a far more strategic and empowered manner. We are witnessing a rise in financial confidence, long-term thinking and value-driven participation. This is beyond inclusion; it is genuine financial independence. With ‘M’, our endeavour is to support these everyday financial journeys with solutions that strengthen independence and long-term wellbeing.”

Actor Rashmika Mandanna, Brand Ambassador for AU Small Finance Bank, added, “It’s inspiring to see women across India embracing digital banking, planning their finances and even building small businesses with greater confidence. ‘M’ is supporting these transitions meaningfully and helping women take steady steps toward financial independence.”

‘M’ is evolving into a comprehensive platform that helps women:

• build financial confidence

• pursue micro-entrepreneurship

• access structured credit

• adopt digital tools for daily money management

• plan long-term wealth creation

With its expanding suite of benefits, digital capabilities and women-centric propositions, ‘M’ aims to deepen women’s participation in India’s formal financial ecosystem and strengthen AU SFB’s commitment to supporting women across the country.

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