PSU banks started looking at cross-selling much later, says Rajnish Kumar

Cross-selling ushered in by private sector banks, Kumar says at Moneycontrol’s Startup

BharatPe chairman Rajnish Kumar on July 7 said that state-owned lenders have started looking at cross-selling much later than the private sector banks.

"Cross-selling was brought by private sector banks. It was only after this that public sector banks started looking at cross-selling,” said Kumar, who was the chairman of State Bank of India before moving to the fintech.

Kumar was speaking at Moneycontrol’s Startup Conclave in Bengaluru, where big names from the industry are brainstorming on what lies ahead for the startup ecosystem amid a challenging global climate.

Adding to this, Kumar said now-a-day there is cross-selling pressure, but earlier bankers used to have a pressure of settling the books every week.

"Pressure is always there is organisation, but nature may change," he said.

Cross-selling is the practice by banks to offer complementary products or services, or additional to their existing customers.

Banks typically cross-sell insurance products of their subsidiaries, and sometimes of other companies, along with loan products. Many times banks insist purchase of policies along with loan products.

Further, he said when it comes to revenue, currently, the regulators and the law leave little scope to get revenue out of payments. Hence, everybody is looking at cross-selling and digital lending as an opportunity.