In a bid to position itself in the highly competitive retail banking segment, Hinduja group promoted IndusInd Bank on Wednesday said it was open to acquisitions.
"We need to acquire banks inorder to grow rapidly in the retail sector", the Bank's executive vice president, Moses Harding said in New Delhi, declining to divulge the details.
Harding said organic growth in the sector was limited in the short run as the banking regulator Reserve Bank followed a conservative approach towards issuing fresh permissions for opening branches and added that dramatic growth was possible only through the acquisition route.
Asked whether the bank had identified any potential targets for acquisition, Harding merely said the bank was yet to apply its mind to the issue, following a change in strategy by the NRI promoted banks to foray into retail banking.
Harding also said that the bank has lined up other products for consolidating its position in the segment with a foray into retail lending activities.
IndusInd would get into personal loans, two wheeler financing, home loans and other direct lending activities and branches have been directed to commence the process, though a formal launch is awaited, he added.
The bank is aiming 30 per cent business from the retail segment, he said, adding that it has already identified 30 odd branches for positioning itself in the retail arena.
Announcing the ISO 9001 certification recieved for the bank, Harding said IndusInd has drawn up plans to kickstart gold imports on behalf of large traders.
Under the scheme, the bank would directly import gold on behalf of large traders for which it is tying up with overseas suppliers.
The scheme would be advantageous to gold importers as it would do away with the need for opening letters of credit, he added.
The market for imported gold is placed at Rs 25,000 crore (Rs 250 billion) and the bank hopes to corner 15 per cent of the pie within the first year.
IndusInd, which currently operates around 60 odd branches across the country, receive the the ISO certification for meeting all the requirements as quality management systems.
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