Banks expect double-digit growth in retail loan book this festive season

See uptick in retail loan book; expect 10-12% credit growth this festive season

The largest public sector bank, State Bank of India (SBI), expects its retail loan book to grow substantially this festive season. Speaking on the sidelines of the bank’s event, Chairman Rajnish Kumar said, “The retail credit growth is looking promising. It is expected to be in the range of 10-12 per cent this festive season.”

Compared to last year, the retail loan book of SBI has grown by 18.68 per cent till June 2019. Due to slowdown in the economy, the first two quarters of 2019-20 have been slow for retail loans. According to the Reserve Bank of India data, the retail loan book was 15.6 per cent in August 2019, compared to 18.2 per cent in August 2018.

Keeping the festive cheer in mind, SBI has launched the debit card EMI facility for its existing customers. Customers will now be able to convert their consumer durables purchases into easy instalments of six to 18 months on select brands. Some of the key benefits that customers can enjoy while using this facility are zero documentation, no processing fee, no branch visit, instant disbursal irrespective of the existing savings bank account balance.

Likewise, the biggest private player, HDFC Bank, has launched special offers with over 1,000 retail brands that will offer discounts, cashbacks, and extra reward points on both in-store and online purchases. HDFC Bank is also offering special offers on all banking products.

ICICI Bank has also joined the party with its festive bonanza. There are over 5,000 offers on premium brands, e-commerce sites, and at 20,000-plus stores. The offers are applicable till October 31. Pranav Mishra, head-retail liabilities, ICICI Bank, said, “Though these are early days, the response to the festive offers is very encouraging. The transactions on e-commerce platforms by our customers using our debit and credit cards and internet banking have grown tenfold, compared to the similar period last year.”