Syndicate Bank Plans Tele-Banking In Delhi

The Delhi zone of the Syndicate Bank has embarked upon an ambitious growth target and modernisation programme that includes tele-banking in about half of its branches in the capital within the current financial year, a senior bank official said here.

The Manipal-based Syndicate Bank has already fully computerised 20 branches in the capital. Sixteen more branches will be completely modernised in the 1998-99 financial year.

Syndicate Bank general manager Prem Maini said the tele-banking facility would be offered by all the 36 branches by March 31,1999.

The customer will be given a secret code. Using this code, the user can ascertain on telephone three last transactions, give stop payment instructions and know rates of interest for different maturities. The customer will also be able to download his bank statement on his computer through a fax modem.

 

Maini said, unlike some of the foreign banks which charge an exorbitant fee for add-on facilities and insist on very high minimum balance requirement, the Syndicate Bank would not put any extra fee on the customers head. Two branches have started giving this facility.

Of ten zones, the Delhi zone of the Syndicate Bank accounts for over 25 per cent of its business with about 130 branches spread in Delhi and other north Indian states.

The Delhi zone had deposits of Rs 3564 crore and advances of Rs 1085 crore as on March 31, 1998. The zone has set a growth target of 40 per cent in deposits and 82 per cent in advances for the current financial year, Maini said. The performance in the last three months suggests it should be possible to achieve the growth targets, the bank general manager said.

In a bid to improve customer service, the bank is implementing the customer-adoption scheme. Under the scheme, important bank customers are identified and each of them is taken care of by a particular staff member. About 500 staff members would take care of 2000 customers which, the bank feels, are important.

According to Maini, the staff is voluntarily coming forward to take up this scheme. While there is no financial incentive in the scheme, the bank staff find it attractive from the point of view of building their social network.