SBI to open More SME Branches in Chennai
The State Bank of India (SBI) plans to add four more SME branches in Chennai in the current financial year.
“By opening additional SME branches in the Chennai circle, the public sector bank aims to strengthen its foothold in this south Indian business hub by catering to customers in the high-potential SME segment,” commented Vinay Prasad, Senior Officer, SBI, Ranchi.
SBI is also planning to hire cluster-level and branch-level relationship managers for the proposed SME branches, who can offer expert advice regarding financial products and services to prospective customers.
Commenting on the decision taken by the SBI to open additional SME branches in Chennai, H Ajmera, proprietor of Marble Kingdom, a small-sized marble exporting unit in Chennai said, “We welcome the decision and are hopeful that with the opening of these SME dedicated branches, financial transactions will become easier. In addition, an increasing number of small businesses will be able to enjoy easy access to credit facilities.”
So far, SBI has taken several initiatives for its SME clients. From lowering interest rates to restructuring dues and stepping up credit lines, the bank has been a pioneer in resolving the loan related issues of the SME segment. It further plans to open SME branches in Chennai as a part of its commitment to help the sector tide over the prevailing liquidity crisis.
The bank is simultaneously taking steps to build the SME cadre through special training programmes.
The country’s largest public sector lender already has 17 branches for small business customers and eight branches for the mid-corporate group in the city. In addition to these units, it has decided to open more branches to meet the credit requirements of the SME players in the city.
For the current year, SBI plans to increase the total number of banking divisions in the Chennai circle by 140. The bank already has SME City Credit Centres in Chennai, Madurai and Tiruchi in Tamil Nadu.
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