It has been a decade since Shyam Srinivasan took over as managing director and chief executive officer at Federal Bank. He wants to ramp up the bank's unsecured lending going ahead even as it homes into the space vacated by competition. Reappointed for a fresh three-year term as the bank's helmsman, he spoke to Hamsini Karthik on the plot ahead.
The banking regulator was uncomfortable with the runaway pace at which consumer credit was growing.
It is 10 years since Bandhan Financial Services became the first microfinance institution (MFI) to receive the universal bank licence. A year later, in 2015, it started operations. Bandhan's entry into banking was seen as a vote of confidence by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the country's microfinance sector. Subsequently, the RBI awarded small finance bank licences to nine MFIs.
'Das is friendly, but he finally does what he does. The quality of engagement is very good.'
Unlike any other business, banking is a turf where the captain's role is the most critical. Often a bank is defined by the personality of the CEO who runs it. Both HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank are the creation of their CEOs, notes Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Shyam Srinivasan, managing director and CEO, shares with Business Standard the strategy to grow the bank's retail lending business in the coming quarters.
Standard Chartered Bank on Monday announced key changes in the top management of its global positions.
The rubber and tourism industries in the state, to which the bank has exposure, have been hit.
Banks now ride on what is defined as a "banking outlet". This is a fixed-point service unit, manned by either the bank's staff or its business correspondent (BC), where all kinds of services - acceptance of deposits, encashment of cheques, cash withdrawal or lending of money - are provided for a minimum of four hours per day, for at least five days a week. Banks are now turning to reposition the manner in which they acquire customers, report Abhijit Lele and Raghu Mohan.
In a bid to gain a bigger share of the customer's wallet, banks are ramping up their cross-selling initiatives.
Banks have been struggling hard to recover dues from grounded Kingfisher Air.
'The CEO will neither be able to guide the senior team in operational matters nor decide on their appointment, compensation or removal.' 'Yet, the CEO is responsible for the profit and loss of the bank!' 'Why would the senior executives listen to him?' 'Which self-respecting professional would want to be a CEO with these constraints?' asks Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Kerala floods take a toll on small businesses, NBFCs brace for losses
Home loans also pose lower bad-debt risks for the banks than corporate loans.
A revival in investment is likely to be a key near-term initiative.
Unlike in the past, when old private banks compromised upon underwriting standards to take on the bulk, they've now realised that scaling up at the cost of quality isn't worth the while. These banks have also readjusted growth targets when required, and rebalanced books to preserve capital and asset quality.
Ruling out a cut in lending rates, bankers said the status quo policy stance of the Reserve Bank will be followed by them, at least in the near-term.
Post graduate colleges are aggressively tying up with banks to introduce banking courses.
Attractions range from start-up challenges to non-monetary perks; employee stock options also play a role.
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