India’s Top PSUs 2019

India’s Top PSUs 2019 E - 4 Experts’ View Kindly share with us the Indian Bank’s journey since inception Established to indigenously cater to the banking needs of our citizens during Swadeshi Movement, Indian Bank proudly shares its Founding Day with India’s Independence Day, i.e., 15th August, exactly 40 years separating each other. We spread our operations overseas with branches in Jaffna (1939) Singapore and Rangoon (1941). Indian Bank was nationalised in the first tranche in July 1969. The 113-year old Bank has been credited for its ability to prudently adopt to the changing times. The Bank was the first among the PSBs to install ATM in 1989 and also the 1st Drive-in ATM in 1990 in Chennai. It never looked back since the historic turnaround in 2001-02 and the Bank has been posting Net Profit uninterruptedly every year since 2001-02 and equally importantly, has been self-reliant in Capital since FY2002-03. Indian Bank The Bank was a forerunner in ushering in thenowfamous ‘Financial Inclusion’, having launched the concept in Puducherry in 2006 and a pioneer in SHG Movement. Be its contribution in fulfilling social commitments or its financial standing or innovation- backed products and services or operational efficiency, the Bank is standing tall in the Indian banking scenario even during challenging times for the sector. No wonder, the Bank is conferred with a plethora of awards year after year and today, it is christened as the ‘Trusted Brand’ in the Banking Industry’. What strategy has your Bank adopted for sustained growth over the past 4-5 years? The Bank’s strong customer- centric approach, innate ability to quickly understand the changing needs of clients, ability to innovate products, services and ways of delivery, deliberately setting tall benchmarks, imbibing a strong ‘sense of belonging’ among successive generations of its human resources and importantly, making the best use of the technological tools, prudent risk management are some of the important factors behind its successful growth trajectory in the last few years. We clocked nearly 18% and 16% business growth in the last two years, beating the industry average, which is a clear indicator for the effectiveness strategies pursued. In fact, Indian Bank stood among the first 3 ranks in many key business, asset quality, capital and efficiency parameters in the last 2-3 years. ‘Prudence combined with caution’ continues to be the watchwords of in pursuing our growth plans. What are some of the key factors that contribute to the success of your Bank? Strong Capital Adequacy with a healthy Tier I Capital, calibrated loan book growth with a diversified portfolio, among the best in Asset Quality, healthy Provision Coverage Ratio, robust risk management practices, wider network of branch supported by efficient alternate delivery channels, are some of the strengths of the Bank. A Bank cannot maintain such a record without certain distinctly positive, supportive factors. The core inherent strengths, viz., deep ‘customer connect’, unflinching loyalty of workforce and the confidence of all its other stakeholders have given the Bank a strong base. Indian Bank and its customers, for over a century, have been treating each other as ‘precious partner in progress’ and this is the key attribute for the Bank’s success during times of challenges. Padmaja Chunduru Managing Director & CEO