Tiruvananthapuram-headquartered State Bank of Travancore (SBT) is eyeing a business of Rs 100,000 crore by March 2010, an increase of 38 per cent from the current total business. Retail deposits and advances would lead the bank’s growth, according to bank’s senior official.
Speaking to Business Standard A K Jagannathan, managing director, SBT said as of today the bank’s total business stood at Rs 72,000 crore by end of the current fiscal, the bank is hoping to reach Rs 75,000 crore.
Currently, of the total business, deposits stood at Rs 41,000 crore and advances around Rs 31,000 crore. By 2010 this would be increased to Rs 56,000 crore and Rs 44,000 crore respectively.
The bank is planning to open 50 new branches in 2009-10, which would take the number of branches to 773 from the present 723. The bank is also planning to recruit another 1,200 people, which would take up the total employees to 12,200 from the current 11,000.
The bank, which is operating out of Kerala, which has a large number of NRIs, has reported a 17 per cent increase in the NRI deposits to Rs 10,104 crore between April and December 2008 compared to Rs 8,600 crore in 2007-08.
NRIs remittance has also increased 41 per cent to Rs 14,000 crore between April and January 2009 compared to Rs 9,864 crore, a year ago. The bank presently has tie-ups with 23 exchanges in West Asia and opened a representative office in Bur Dubai, which was inaugurated in August.
Jagannathan further said bank’s housing loan credit has increased to Rs 4,590 crore between April and December 2008 as compared to Rs 4,157 crore in 2007-08. To boost sagging home loan business the bank is offering home loans at 8 per cent for one year upto Rs 50 lakh, for those sanctions on March and April 2009, as against the current rate of 10.25 per cent, and offering home loan applications on the net.
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He further added, the bank has set a target to become the number two bank, currently it is number two, in the country in the car loans segment. To achieve this, SBI to offer car loans to customers at 10 per cent for one year, for the loans which will be sanctioned between March 1, 2009 to April 30, 2009 and to be availed before May 15, 2009, as against the existing rate of 11.5 per cent.
SBT’s net profit for the first three quarters of 2008-09 was Rs 415.81 crore, as against Rs 236.91 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year.