The Hindu Business Line : Reliance Money to open more rural outlets

Pune, Aug. 13 Reliance Money (RM), the financial products distribution arm of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group company Reliance Capital, is stepping up its rural thrust, and intends to set up 10,000 franchisee outlets in 5,165 of the 5,645 tehsils in India the during this fiscal.

The first two of these were commissioned at Bhor and Saswad in Maharashtra today.

These outletswill be operated in partnership with a local entrepreneur. NGOs have been roped in to scan and identify prospective partners on the basis of 30 criteria, while the company will impart training to the selected youth, Mr Sudip Bandopadhyay, Director and CEO, Reliance Money, said.

Announcing its tie-up with Rural Relations, a rural consumer-focused organisation, to help in the selection process, Mr Badopadhyay said that partners had already been appointed in 1,001 tehsils.

By the end of the year, the company expected to provide employment opportunities to 50,000 rural youth as part of this “inclusive growth” initiative, he added.

“We will not adopt a plain vanilla financial services approach, but prepare an area-specific basket of products.”

Mr Bandopadhyay saidthese could be cattle, crop, bullock cart or tractor insurance in the General Insurance basket, term insurances at Rs 25 or Rs 50 pay out for a year’s coverage, or Systematic Investment Plans for monthly installment of Rs 50-100.

The company is present in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and West Bengal.

It is targetting 1,045 more tehsils in Uttarachal, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Orissa in the second phase of the plan. Refusing to give any details on the financial outlay involved ,

Mr Bandopadhyay said Reliance Money expected 10-20% of its total business to be generated through it.

He added that along with the rural thrust, the company is also increasing RM outlets in the urban area from 3,237 to 10,000 during this fiscal.

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