South Indian Bank Targets More NRI Money

The Thrissur-based South Indian Bank is tapping other foreign exchange houses for boosting its foreign currency inflows.

About 30 per cent of its NRI customers are from West Asia, and the bank caters to them through the Haadi Express Exchange exclusively through its staff in Dubai and Sharjah.

“The bank is offering the fastest and the cheapest money transfer facility. Money is transferred within 30 minutes to the customer’s account and the customer will get a message on his mobile about the exchange remittance to his account, if he opts for mobile service,” bank chairman VA Joseph told Business Standard.

Joseph was in Mysore for the inauguration of the Jayalakshmipuram branch and an onsite ATM, and the opening of the renovated premises of its Mysore main branch on the Devaraj Urs Road. He said, “We will further improve our competitive service in the next 2-3 years with more tie-ups for money transfer.”

As against the Rs 20,000 crore business last year, he said the bank was aiming for Rs 25,000 crore business this year. The net NPA was less than 1 per cent last year. It has been planned to bring this down to below half per cent. Established in 1929 with a capital of Rs 22,000 and now having 478 branches spread across 23 states, South Indian Bank has proposed to extend its branch network to 500 by opening 22 branches this year.

The new branches proposed to come up are: four in Bangalore, three each in Hyderabad and Chennai, two in Mysore at Banni Mantap and Kuvempunagar, and other centres in the country. “We are opening two branches in Mysore because the city is expected to have a great growth, as Bangalore is getting crowded.

It will be like what Pune is to Mumbai,” he said. South Indian Bank has as many as 270 branches in its home state, Kerala, and 93 branches in the neighbouring Tamil Nadu.