Credit growth in the banking system is low: SBI chief

India's largest lender, State Bank of India's Chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya on Tuesday said the credit growth in India's banking system is low.

Elaborating on the current economic growth rate and inflation rate, Bhattacharya said: "Credit growth especially in the banking system is low. Nine is the percentage at which the credit should grow. The credit is, however, growing at close to five (per cent).

Today, much of the credit at least for the companies that are doing well comes from the market...if that number is added, the credit growth comes around 7.5 per cent. Even it (the credit growth) is lower than a number it should be."

According to her, the lender will bring a number of retail products in the digital space and data analytics will play a key role in digital banking.

"We will bring a number of retail products in digital space and in the corporate front, we will also provide... we have lot of plans. Some of them we will begin delivering within in a very short period of time. They are currently undergoing core user group testing. They will be out very shortly," she said.

"On the corporate side, we will be using not only platforms to bring people together, but also analytics to find out who is producing and who is needing what," Bhattacharya said while emphasising on how the lender is going to leverage the digital platform.

Addressing participants at Banking Conclave organised by Ficci, she said the lender will use data analytics in retail banking too.

On the SBI's credit-deposit ratio at around 50.5 per cent in West Bengal, she said: "We need to create right situations for credit absorption. If there is no credit absorption capacity, pouring lot of credit will cause NPAs."

After inaugurating the bank's wealth management services in the city, Bhattacharya, later in the day, said credit absorption capacity in the north and eastern states are relatively low.

She said that what needs to be done in West Bengal is to have a look at value chain financing.

She, however, said consumption led retail credit growth has been progressing and on the other hand, investment demand has not so far been picked up.

--IANS

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