India’s TOP 500 Companies 2021

INDIA’S TOP 500 COMPANIES 2021 164 Experts’ View Tell us about some of the key milestones achieved by Karur Vysya Bank in recent times. With a rich heritage of over 100 years, we are one of the oldest private sector banks in the country. Since inception, it has been our endeavor to fulfil the needs of our customers, and this has been the bedrock of our very existence. Today, as we stand, we are well-capitalized with ample headroom for credit expansion as there is no immediate requirement of capital infusion. Karur Vysya Bank has had an unbroken record of declaring profits since its inception and the trend continues till today despite the turbulent conditions and stress in the economy. We have also been a pioneer in introducing and adopting technology with a view to provide seamless banking experience to our clients. We have developed the best- in-class digital products and applications in-house, which has helped us to innovate and self-serve our requirements. This has also helped us be ahead of the race and be among the first ones to provide a range of banking services on our mobile app. One such move had been the introduction of digital jewel loan facility on the mobile phone, which enables the customer to fetch the loan from the comfort of his / her house. So, when it comes to digital initiatives, we have always been among the forerunners – all our credit facilities are processed digitally, which ensures credit approvals are delivered to the clients within 15 minutes and work-flow happens in paperless mode. In addition to this, we have also introduced new bank-in-bank concepts through branchless banking in the form of NEO. Besides, Karur Vysya Bank also provides precious metals (bullion) trading and lending facility to gold and silver merchants. We are one of the few banks to have a stand-alone commercial credit product specifically tailored for the business community. As a bank, we have also always tried to explore growth opportunities through tie-ups and partnerships for co-lending and partnership lending avenues. We have established tie-ups with large Fintechs, facilitating online delivery of consumer credit purely on the basis of customer metrics. You took over as MD and CEO of the Bank in July 2020. What are your key priorities for the Bank in the near future? Our focus would continue to be on the bank’s retail business and to improve its granularity, in both the deposits as well as the credit portfolio. Karur Vysya Bank has always been working towards catering to the needs of domestic and retail saving segments. So, our key focus would be on the same while expanding our base of small business, trading and manufacturing sector and catering to their diverse requirements. We also plan to fine tune our digital banking platform so as to be able to offer a whole suite of digital products and applications through self-service mode to our clients. We are also extensively looking for growth opportunities through new channels such as partnerships and tie-ups with Fintechs and NBFCs. On the team front, over the short-run as the economy and markets take time to recover from the pandemic-induced setbacks, we plan to prepare our workforce to be fully involved in the distribution and cross-selling activities. Meanwhile, on new products and services, we are looking to launch a personal (retail) credit card for our clients in the near future. The world is still grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic. What role has the Bank played in helping Indian businesses deal with the pandemic? The Covid-19 pandemic has brought about a major disruption across personal and business lives of almost every individual across the world. Undoubtedly, it is a watershed moment in the history. Of course, none of us had ever experienced such a situation before. However, tough times call for drastic measures. At Karur Vysya Bank, we were quick to take stock of the situation and align our operations accordingly so as to minimize the impact not only on our business but also on our KARUR VYSYA BANK B Ramesh Babu Managing Director & CEO Dun & Bradstreet