State Bank of India chairman targets unbanked in expansion plans

The State Bank of India’s newly appointed chairman said he’s targeting the country’s unbanked population as it seeks to expand amid intense competition for deposits.

India’s largest bank has made significant investments in digitalization and technology over the past few years, helping it amass new customers at a “much lower cost,” Challa Sreenivasulu Setty said in an interview on Bloomberg Radio. That’s also enabled the lender to boost its operational efficiency and productivity, he said.

“We would like to leverage that technology and digitalization to reach the under-served across the country,” he said. “There are lot of banking needs which are unmet in India. This investment in technology and digitalization has helped us to reach the bottom of the pyramid in a much lower cost.”

As it seeks to build out deposits, the bank is also planning to add branches in areas where it has no presence, according to Setty. A mobile application is helping it add 50,000 to 60,000 savings accounts per day, he said.