Mumbai, Dec 13 (IANS) ICICI Bank Thursday announced the launch of 101 rural branches in six states as part of its financial inclusion plan to provide banking services in unbanked villages.
The branches have been opened in 19 districts in Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
“ICICI has always recognised the potential of rural India and the importance of inclusive growth. In line with this approach, we have launched 101 ‘Gramin’ branches,” said Rajiv Sabharwal, ICICI Bank’s executive director.
“In Maharashtra, 15 branches have been opened in Kolhapur, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sangli and Solapur districts. With these, the bank’s network in the state has grown to 504 branches,” he said.
“The bank has also opened close to two million ‘no frill’ savings accounts this year, taking the total number to around 12 million,” he said.
The rural branches will offer services such as savings bank account, fixed and recurring deposit, remittances, kisan credit cards and tractor loans.
The bank had Wednesday launched Saral Money Prepaid Card with Unique Identification Authority of India. The card can be used to deposit or withdraw money from various customer service points using finger print authentication.
