ICICI Bank, the country's biggest private lender, is believed to be exploring ways of hiving off its ATM management and points of sale terminals into a separate entity.
ICICI Bank has a network of 1,416 branches and over 4,600 Automated Teller Machines (ATM) across the country, which it manages by itself, while several other banks have outsourced their ATM management and POS (credit and debit card payment accepting) terminals.
An ICICI Bank spokesperson said: "We evaluate various options for different areas of our operations based on global and Indian trends and experience. Certain areas of operations could be made more efficient by transferring to specialised players, who can bring operating efficiency and functional improvements."
"The ATM infrastructure management and acquiring business (POS terminals) are of this nature. For instance, in the US, the card transaction acquiring business (POS terminals) has largely moved out of banks and is done by specialised players," the spokesperson said.
He added the bank had not taken any decision to hive off these operations, as it would have to follow internal and regulatory approval process.
"In any event, the impact of such a transaction on ICICI Bank's financial statements may not be material," he added.
