State Bank of India is set to launch a completely revamped app by the end of this month.
“The new, revamped app will be the fulcrum of our entire digital offering and will not be restricted to just enable banking. It goes beyond banking and has the offerings of all our associate companies as well,” PK Gupta, Managing Director (Retail & Digital Banking), SBI, told BusinessLine . “For instance, you can get your SBI Life insurance policy on the app, check your credit card details, track your mutual funds, handle your demat account and also shop on it.”
Asked whether there have been significant shifts in the way consumers use banking services, he said: “Seventy-eight per cent of transactions are happening outside our bank branches. Consumers are shifting from using ATMs and are increasingly transacting using the internet, PoS (point of sale) machines and mobiles.”
Corporate credit growthCredit growth from the corporate side has been muted, said Gupta. This year, it is expected to be 6 per cent, slightly lower than last year. Retail banking, on the other hand, is doing very well, growing at an annualised 13-14 per cent, he said. “Going forward it can become much bigger. Today, retail constitutes 55 per cent of our loan book, this can go up to 60 per cent,” he added.
Asked about the bank’s engagement with start-ups, Gupta said: “We are partnering with a lot of start-ups. We fund some of them, use some of their products or help them with product development. Similar to our start-up advisory cell in Bengaluru, we have started an SME advisory cell in Hubli in partnership with the Deshpande Foundation.”
CSR activityAs a part of the bank’s CSR activities, Gupta inaugurated the SBI-St John’s Child Dialysis Centre, an exclusive centre for children, at St John’s Hospital in Bengaluru today. SBI donated advanced dialysis equipment worth ₹45 lakh to the hospital, which will provide dialysis at one-third the normal cost. Farooque Shahab, Chief General Manager, SBI, Bengaluru Circle, was also present.
SBI spends 1 per cent of its annual profits (₹100-145 crore) on CSR every year, and this goes towards, health, education and cleanliness initiatives. “We have 16 local head offices, each of them spends ₹2-3 crore every year on CSR,” said Gupta.
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