The Hindu Business Line : South Indian Bank to sell UTI MF products

South Indian Bank is all set to announce its tie-up with UTI Mutual Fund on Thursday for selling the latter's mutual fund products.The announcement is expected to come close on the heels of the bank's tie-up with other mutual fund companies such as Franklin Templeton, Tata, Sundaram and Reliance over the last one month.

To cross sell such products, the bank has roped in 50 marketing staff (on contract) last week.

Confirming the development, the SIB Chairman, Dr V.A. Joseph, told Business Line that the bank had hitherto depended on its own staff for selling mutual fund and insurance products. "But our staff had difficulty in moving out. So we decided to recruit marketing staff. We are targeting a business volume of Rs 5 crore from the sale of such products this year," he added.

Stating that it was necessary to make a bouquet of offerings, particularly because of its rising NRI client base, he said, "If we do not have such offerings, customers tend to move out."

Three per cent of SIB customers, according to Dr Joseph are non-resident Indians (NRIs). "When they are here on a holiday, they seek advice on the various remittance channel to keep their future investments spread in different areas."

Asked if the bank also offered portfolio management services, he said to imbibe professionalism in the system, the bank had recruited about 450 specialists (professionals) this year. "A record recruitment comprising chartered accountants, cost accountants, engineers, management graduates and agriculture graduates."

The bank is planning to rope in more people as it widens its reach.

It has also shed some flab along the way. About 151 employees opted out on voluntary retirement.

Business target

On business, he said the bank was targeting to achieve Rs 20,000 crore this year. "We are also targeting to bring down the NPA level to less than one per cent by March 2007. It is hovering around 1.69 per cent at present. It stood at 2.07 per cent last quarter."

Aggressive recovery drive and increase in low-cost deposits have been attributed to the reduction in NPA level.

The bank, he said had almost finalised its tie-up with CitiBank on credit cards. "The matter awaits signing of the agreement."

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