SBI, GE Money to expand partnership beyond credit cards

State Bank of India and GE Money announced jointly today plans to take the 10 year old strategic partnership to a new level of growth and expansion in the future, after a meeting between Mr. O. P. Bhatt, Chairman, State Bank of India and Mr. Yoshiaki Fujimori, President  & CEO, GE Money Asia. SBI Cards, a joint venture between GE and SBI, is the number 2 card player in India, one of the fastest-growing consumer financial services markets in the world.

The SBI Card JV will continue to operate, as it has since the partnership was formed, under two separate JVs:  SBI Cards & Payment Services Pvt. Ltd. (SBICPSL), which focuses on the marketing and distribution of SBI Cards, and GE Capital Business Processes Management Services Pvt. Ltd. (GEBPMSL), which handles the technology and processing needs of the JV.

To enable a higher level of responsiveness to customer needs, a CEO will be appointed for each JV, and both these entities would look at expanding the scope of their service offerings.

The JV partners have agreed to nominate Mr. Diwakar Gupta, one of the top executives of State Bank of India, as the CEO of SBI Cards & Payment Services Pvt. Ltd.

Under the new strategic initiative, SBICPSL will be better positioned to participate in the high-growth consumer financial services industry by offering other consumer financial products, such as personal loans and credit insurance, effectively expanding the scope of the JV.   This move is a natural extension of the JV's leadership in the credit card space, and the success enjoyed by both partners.  By cross-selling related financial services and products to its existing large pool of customers, the JV will also be offering an enriched portfolio of products to help customers realize their financial needs.

GEBPMSL will leverage the scale of its processing platforms to serve other providers in India, in addition to SBI Card's products and services. SBI and GE would maintain the same percentage ownership in both JVs.

Mr Bhatt said, "India's rapidly expanding financial services sector offers several business opportunities and State Bank of India will be pleased to exploit these opportunities, in partnership with a global giant like GE, wherever possible."

Mr. Fujimori said, "We are delighted to enhance the level of partnership with SBI.  This new structure enables both GE and SBI to continue to bring innovative financial products and services to India's growing consumer base. India offers GE a tremendous opportunity for growth and investment and our partnership with SBI will play a core role in our strategic growth plans going forward." 

Sourced From: Adfactors Public Relations Pvt Ltd