Financial inclusion push: Kotak Mahindra Bank investing in technology, cautious on cyber security, says official

Kotak Mahindra Bank

Tapobrat Chaudhry, President & Business Head – Microfinance at Kotak Mahindra Bank, has said that the bank is investing heavily in technology and putting efforts to ensure that its digital network can withstand cyberattacks such as phishing, and online frauds, among others.

“Any external attacks such as phishing are prevented or even if it happens it is immediately known and corrective steps are taken. So our bank is investing a lot in this technology. Our bank is putting a lot of effort in ensuring that its digital network infrastructure is all up to date,” Chaudhry said.

Chaudhry was speaking at a discussion on the 'Role of tech in financial inclusion' at Moneycontrol.

The official added that every stakeholder who is part of the whole ecosystem has to ensure that sufficient safeguards are built into their delivery of the product to ensure that online fraud, phishing, impersonation and cyber security breaches don't happen.

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Additionally, he said each stakeholder has to ensure that the users of their platform and products are sufficiently digitally aware and digitally literate.

On financial inclusion, Chaudhry said technology has been the most enabling factor in this journey and going forward, it will play a very important role in furthering the cause.

Technology is the single most important factor of course, along with the will and the intent of all the stakeholders, Chaudhry said.

“Financial inclusion also entails providing timely access to credit facilities, in that our bank is doing some important work in reaching out to the low-income groups, reaching out to the underserved communities and offering them banking products, credit facilities which they can use to improve their livelihood and economic activities,” he said.

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Jan Dhan accounts

On Jan Dhan accounts, Chaudhry said Kotak Mahindra Bank has been at the forefront among private sector banks in terms of quarter-on-quarter growth in the number of such accounts opened, which is a part of financial inclusion.

The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) was launched on August 28, 2014, with the aim to provide universal banking services through the opening of zero-balance bank accounts for every unbanked household, based on the guiding principles of banking the unbanked, securing the unsecured and funding the unfunded.

As on August 9, 2023, the number of total PMJDY accounts stood at 50.09 crore, according to a release by the Ministry of Finance. About 55.6 percent (27.82 crore) Jan Dhan account holders are women and 66.7 percent (33.45 crore) of accounts are in rural and semi-urban areas, thus the scheme has introduced banking to more and more people, it stated.