Indian Bank, one of the South based Public Sector Banks recently launched an
innovative scheme of Mobile Banking in North Chennai, which is predominantly
a low and middle Income population. This is a long overdue concept. While mobile
banking is prevalent in rural areas for considerably long time the same has not been
tried in urban areas.
One of the response to this article in a Newspaper by a customer is typical. He has
lamented over the poor service standards in PSBs. The mobile banking will precisely
attack this age old problem with multifarious benefits to all the concerned and provide
a win - win scenerio. Let us look into this aspect in detail.
One of the problems faced by PSBs is serving all segments of customers in a branch
which result in dissatisfaction to most of the customers. PSBs do not have the luxory
of driving out the bottom of the pyramid viz. low income groups like security staff, small
vendors, self employed persons like vegetable vendors, kirana stores etc who keep
very low balances in their accounts and their financial inclusion is utmost necessity for
the larger benefit of the society.
The challenge lies here. Most of the branches of PSBs are crowded with the small
savers and borrowers during the business hours and this forces HNIs and other middle
class customers migrate to new generration private sector banks who avoids financial
inclusion category by stipulating high minimum balances, charges for transactions etc.
Nor they need to look into small clean loans under priority sector, educational loans
without security etc which are taken care of by PSBs. This is a social obligation
cast upon the PSBs and they should do it for the betterment of the society.
However PSBs are penalised for this as the creamy layer of customers move to Private
Banks as the crowd in the banking hall of PSBs drive them away and they do not get
personal attention they deserve.
The mobile banks will take care of the requirements of most of the pensioners, small
vendors etc by providing banking services at their doorstep instead of they coming
to bank branches and overcrowding the small place provided for customers. As a
matter of fact pension can be disbursed during the last week itself which will be
beneficial to all the concerned.
Small retailers, self employed persons can transact by depositing their daily savings
into mobile bank and also make repayments in small lots towards their loans
availed from banks.
Banks can go one step further by appointing Banking correspondents from MFIs,
reputed NBFCs to penetrate urban low income population. This along with
popularising alternate channels among the educated customers can drastically
reduce the crowding at the bank lobbies and improve customer service of PSBs.
This can bring in certain level of level playing field between the PSBs and private
sector Banks and reduce the pressure in the brick and mortar branches
All PSBs should go all out in popularising the mobile banking concept to get over
the chronic deficiency in their service standards.
