AllBank in expansion mode

Allahabad Bank has drawn up plans to drastically increase its presence in south and west India.

The bank has chalked out a plan to increase its branch network by 10 per cent every two years and would concentrate in the south and west India.

The bank proposes to increase the number of ATMs from the current 100 to 350 in next two years and a sum of Rs 300 crore has been earmarked for technology upgradation.

As of today, Allahabad Bank has 1,938 branches, a majority of which are located in the north, north east, east and central India. Of the total branches, 960 are in rural areas, 326 in semi urban areas, 386 are in urban areas and 266 branches are in metropolitan areas.

"We have a strong presence in the eastern, north eastern, northern and central parts of India. There is now a need to increase our presence in south and west India," said Goel said.

He added that as of today, Allahabad Bank has just about 100 branches in the four south Indian states.

Goel said that the bank has sought permission to open five more branches in Gujarat.

"There have been unfortunate developments in the co-operative banking sector in Gujarat, and people here are looking for alternatives. Allahabad Bank will aim to increase its share in Gujarat. The bank's advances in the state stand at Rs 650 crore and deposits at Rs 1,325 crore.

Asked if part of the deposits from Gujarat were being diverted to other parts of the country, the Allahabad Bank ED said that this was not the case, and these deposits were against non funded purposes like letter of credit and bank guarantee.

The ED was in Ahmedabad to announce the forthcoming second public issue of the bank, after which the stake of the government will fall from the present 71.2 per cent to 55.2 per cent.

The issue opens on April 6 and will close on April 12. The issue is being made to augment the capital base of the bank and will enable it to meet future capital requirements arising out of the implementation of the Basel II accord standards.