The Hindu Business Line : Corporation Bank focusing on tier-II, III cities

Mangalore, April 14 Corporation Bank is all set to cross the landmark number of 1,000 branches in the next few months. While widening its network this time, the bank is focusing on tier-II and tier-III cities as it sees them as the future power houses of the country.

Mr B. Sambamurthy, Chairman and Managing Director of Corporation Bank, told Business Line that the bank, which currently has 981 branches, is planning to open another 50 to 60 branches in tier-II and tier-III cities in the next four months.

Asked about the reasons for such a focus, he said that these are the places where the consumption level is going up while the metros are getting saturated. “Tier II and III cities will be the future power houses,” he said.

The bank, which achieved a business volume of Rs 95,000 crore last fiscal, has generally followed a cautious strategy, opening fewer branches when compared to peers in the industry.

NEW FRONTIERS

Mr Sambamurthy says, “Now we want to modify our business model to have a wider footprint, especially in tier-II and tier-III cities. These branches will be situated in the southern, western and northern parts of the country,” he said.

The bank will be opening three branches in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, all in tier-II cities, during this week. The bank is not aggressively targeting metro branches, he said.

According to its annual report for 2006-07, the bank had a presence in 23 States and two Union Territories. The metro sector had the highest number of branches at 294, followed by the urban/port town sector with 253. The number of semi-urban branches stood at 183 and rural branches at 171.

FORMAT

The format of branches to be opened in the next four months will vary according to location.

Mr Sambamurthy said that the bank is opening an Invest Mart that will be attached to a branch in Ahmedabad. “In Invest Mart, we will basically be taking the capital market-based services to middle-class people.

There we sell third-party mutual fund, insurance products, and provide online trading facility. It is an extension in some branches,” he added.