As part of its expansion plan to strengthen its base in North Maharashtra, Saraswat Co-operative Bank Ltd (SCBL), the largest multi-state co-operative bank in the country with a business turnover of Rs 17,000 crore, has acquired the financially troubled city-based Nashik People's Co-operative Bank (NPCB) with 14 branches.
The bank had already got the approval of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). With the acquisition of NPCB, the total number of branches of the Saraswat Bank has gone up to 141.
Saraswat's plans of increasing business in Nashik got a boost on the very first day of the NPCB's acquisition as it got the largest deposit of Rs 14 crore from a local businessman.
NPCB, which was founded in 1923, had deposits of Rs 124 crore, with 1,30,478 deposit accounts. It was in the red and its loss stood at Rs 31 crore.
The bank has plans to extend its business in north Maharashtra, which includes five districts - Nashik, Dhule, Jalgaon, Nandurbar and Ahmednagar.
Kishore V Rangnekar, chairman, Saraswat Co-operative Bank Ltd, said, "The merger of Nashik People's Cooperative Bank with the Saraswat Bank will help us extend our base in North Maharashtra. With this merger, we expect to touch Rs 2,000 crore business turnover from Nashik district alone by the end of the financial year 2010-11."
With an aim to extend its banking network in the rest of the north Maharashtra, the bank is also planning to open branches at Jalgaon, Dhule and Ahmednagar, shortly.
"We have set a business turnover target of Rs 2,500 crore from north Maharashtra (including Rs 2,000 crore from Nashik district) by March 2011," Rangnekar said.