State Bank of India is scaling down the pace of branch opening

Kumar mentioned they had rationalised about 1,600 branches in the network last year

After merger of associate banks with itself in 2017-18, State Bank of India (SBI) is scaling down the pace of branch opening. It will open about 250 branches annually, as against the earlier 750-800 by the group.

Asked about the impact of the shift towards digital banking, using technology, SBI chairman Rajnish Kumar said physical contact points will still be needed because India is a vast country. Only, the outlets are becoming smaller. “You may have banking outlets with one or two persons but you will still require a physical location, where people can come and get the service,” he said.

Kumar