New unified assisted banking on wheels for interior rural areas
29 Nov 2022
New unified assisted banking on wheels for interior rural areas
Banks are on the CBS platform. Digitization has made strides in banking. Loss-making, non-viable rural branches dent their profitability. We can explore unified assisted banking on wheels to have a better reach into interior villages and their hamlets through market analysis. Though mobile banking on wheels has been tried in the past, it needs to be improved to tap the maximum advantages for the banks as well as the people therein in the present scenario according to industry analysis.
Zero balance No-frill accounts in the business news have been opened by banks for thousands of people under the JAM initiative. Interface of multiple PSU banks with transaction linkage is feasible in the CBS scenario.
The concept of regional rural banks has not clicked much in many parts.
A large number of rural banks' small branches cater to many villages as per the service area approach. Some villages are quite far from the nearest bank branch. Some such branches are not profit-making or just survive to sustain the establishment costs involved.
Many customers in such areas are semi literate or name-sake certificate holders, who need Assisted Banking services to promote banking habits.
By and large, there is hesitancy among bank staff to serve in interior rural areas without providing basic amenities in the financial news today. Unified Assisted Banking on Wheels can curtail problems for both banks and rural folk.
It can serve more village clusters and their hamlets by reaching out to people in secured big vans converted into a minivan.
SBI has made record profits and has extensive branch networks. SBI and the Lead Bank in the District can work in tandem on the specific modalities involved in the new concept.
From member banks that are more present in the service region, willing employees can be drafted. Familiarity with the local language is needed to explain to villagers how to complete banking transactions.
Interface of CBS:
Digitalization on secured systems is feasible, though most of the transactions would be for deposits, small loans, basic services, etc., of the people living in the villages covered. It would be a good way to motivate people to open bank accounts and to impress upon Zero-Balance No-Frill account holders the need to use banking services.
The menace of private moneylenders charging exorbitant rates can be curtailed. There would be a big demand for gold loans in market analysis. Motivated chit funds and other questionable channels can be drastically cut down. In due course, the moving-bank staff would get acquainted with the areas in their purview; so too, the villagers would be trained on how to use digital banking services.
Of late, there is a dire need for deposits in banks—to meet the higher demand for loans, etc.—from the people. It would be helpful to women and farmers—they could save time, fuel, and energy by not having to travel to distant bank branches and companies in the news. Adequate security arrangements for the van are a must.
As far as possible, the Unified Assisted Banks on Wheels shall be parked in prominent public spaces, say a school or market, to make it easier for people to access and carry out their other purchases, too. To make the most of the new system, local market days in numerous village clusters can be researched.
Conclusion:
The new system can be initiated in the economy business on a pilot basis in a few village cluster areas and can be improvised and expanded based on experience gained.