The Hindu Business Line : ‘Oriental Bank must have branch in Pakistan’

Network linking: The Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, at a function to mark the linking of the entire network of 1,323 branches of Oriental Bank of Commerce to Core Banking Solution (CBS), in the Capital on Monday .

Our Bureau

New Delhi, March 31 Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) may take steps to open a branch in Pakistan, with the Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, on Monday asking the top management of the bank to apply to the Reserve Bank of India for this purpose.

“OBC started in Lahore, but it’s unfortunate that it does not have a branch in Pakistan. You should apply to RBI. Let’s take a chance and see how the new Government (in Pakistan) responds,” Mr Chidambaram said at an OBC event, where he launched the eZ banking products of the bank. On the occasion, the Finance Minister also declared the completion of rollout of core banking solutions in all its 1,323 branches across the country.

OBC was established in Lahore in 1943, but later moved to New Delhi after 1947.

The bank achieved business of Rs 1,00,000 crore in 63 years, but is now on course to achieve the next 1,00,000 crore in about three-and-half years.

Launching a number of IT-based products and services like online education loans, OBC e-shoppe for booking railway and air tickets, and cashmate — an ATM-cum-debit card for students, the Finance Minister said that the bank should not worry whether their technology products would be accepted or not.

He pointed out that people in rural India were quite good with quickly adopting new technologies.

He also said that employees of public sector banks should not look to go on strikes in the current competitive environment. Bank employees should strive to make public sector banks world-class institutions,” he said.

He urged OBC to continue to be aggressive in its approach to expand financial inclusion so as to carry out the objectives of the Government.

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