SBI plans to use biz correspondents for collection activities

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New Delhi, Sep 25 (IANS) Lending major State Bank of India (SBI) will use its vast network of business correspondents for collection activities as it plans to focus on "Financial Inclusion and Micro Markets (FI&MM)," especially in rural and semi-urban areas, SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar said on Friday.

Kumar was speaking during an online event organised to inaugurate the new office of FI&MM vertical which has been shifted from Mumbai to New Delhi.

The new vertical was launched to offer loans predominantly for agriculture and allied activities and micro or small enterprises.

The bank recently created a separate FI&MM vertical with an exclusive focus on rural and semi-urban areas to vastly improve the customer experience for the citizens in the hinterlands.

Under this newly launched vertical, about 8,000 branches in rural and semi-urban areas have been identified for providing specialised services to the micro-segment including micro-credit for small businesses and farmers.

Inaugurating the office in New Delhi, Kumar said: "Today is yet another important day in the history of the bank as we have shifted our FIMM vertical office from Mumbai to New Delhi.

"This will help us to focus and improve our synergy with government agencies and functionaries. The thrust is also to improve service quality and availability of banking services for customers across all segments."

According to Kumar, to ensure special focus and smooth functioning at the local level, the FI&MM vertical will comprise a four-tiered structure under the chief general manager, general manager, regional managers at regional business offices (RBO) and district sales hubs to strengthen the credit delivery system and improve the turnaround time for quick sanctions and disbursement of small loans.

--IANS

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