City Union Bank eyes business in small towns in South

City Union Bank plans to add 60 more branches to its existing network of around 435, to close at 500 branches this fiscal.

The bank’s Chairman S Balasubramanian, who was here for the inauguration of CUB’s 437th branch at Chinniampalayam told BusinessLine that 50 per cent of the new branches would be located in tier-II and -III towns and cities of Tamil Nadu and 25 per cent in Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The bank is targeting a 10-15 per cent growth in business this fiscal. “There are signs of a pick-up in the textile sector, particularly in and around Tirupur and Erode. We expect the growth in industry verticals to materialise in the last quarter,” he said. Though loan delinquency was not much in the last quarter, Balasubramanian admitted to a marginal increase in the net NPA of the bank.

“The power cut in the State contributed to the problem. The situation has now improved and things are looking up.” He said that a decision on rate cut has not been taken. “We are watching the market scenario,” he said.

The bank is now putting off acceptance of bulk deposits. “We accept retail deposits. If credit picks up, we will accept corporate and bulk deposits, but will not offer interest above the card rate,” he said.

On hiring, he said that the bank has been conducting campus interviews across the country for four years now. “Out of the 4,500 on the rolls, 1,200-1,300 joined in the last two-three years. We hired around 450 candidates off-campus last year alone to meet the requirements of our branch expansion plans,” the Chairman said.

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