Bank officers' meet stresses challenges

'Regulations, competition and mobilisation of deposits in the present economic scenario are the greatest challenges faced by the old private sector banks' Ananthakrishna, CMD Karnataka Bank Ltd said.

Speaking as the chief guest at the Fifteenth Conference of the Karnataka Bank Officers Organisation (KBOO) he added that the old private sector banks had to fight the 'Culture of Legacy' from within and the 'Vulture of Acquisition' from outside.

The share of the old private sector banks in the volume of business had been slowly dwindling and it now stood at a mere 5 per cent, he explained. The share of private sector banks too had come down from 90 per cent in 1992 to 73 per cent in 2007, he stated.

Attributing this to the superior services of the present lot of private and foreign sector banks, Ananthakrishna said that adapting to the new environment in the banking system was necessary to survive.

Earlier in his inaugural speech, S Nagarajan, Deputy General Secretary, AIBOA informed that his organisation would fight tooth and nail against the proposed merger of State Bank of Saurashtra with State Bank of India on the Union government's diktat.

A strike by the AIOBA during the last week of January 2008 would also demand pension as a third benefit for about 298,000 bank workers. The strike would also focus on recruitment of new banking forces and also appointment on compassionate grounds, he stated.

Airing apprehensions over the retirement age being extended to 62, Nagarajan said a crisis was looming large large and the details of it would certainly be found in the Sixth Pay Commission.