ICICI, India's biggest private sector lender, is planning an expansion drive in Sri Lanka to tap the vast business potential in the island nation.
"Besides looking at providing financial assistance to Indian corporates who have set up business in Sri Lanka, we are keen on becoming a major player in the retail sector," the bank's Deputy Managing Director Chanda Kochhar, who was in the Sri Lankan capital last week to address the 19th Anniversary Convention of the Association of Professional Bankers, told reporters in Colombo.
Citing the rise in per capita income in Sri Lanka as one of the main reasons for ICICI Bank to plan an expansion, she added that the business environment in Sri Lanka was "quite comfortable" and banking regulations were in line with those of other countries in the region. She also stated that though the bank has only one branch in Sri Lanka, there were plans to increase the branch network along with infusion of new technology.
Kochhar attributed the bank's success to the introduction of new technology. "While the bank would introduce new technology to our customers, we are also looking at sharing some of them with Sri Lankan banks," she said.
Among other things, she identified the introduction of a smart card system in Sri Lanka as a focus area under which printed identification may not be needed to undertake transactions in the future.
"We would be using new technology both in Sri Lanka and India to reach the masses who are not into banking," she said. Describing the bank's performance during the 20 months of its presence in Sri Lanka as satisfactory, Kochhar said, "We are not looking to grow overnight. It would be a steady growth."
As on June 30, the ICICI group had an asset base of $88 billion, besides a market capitalisation of $20 billion.
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