Branchless banking points expansion by Fino payments bank

The bank started operations in June 2017 following RBI’s license to promote digital payments and enable financial inclusion, providing banking services in unbanked and under-banked locations through a branchless network of tech-enabled points, the Bank’s Chief Sales Officer Shailesh Pandey told PTI.

”This is a digital bank for the masses and is a cost effective approach as against the expensive branch network that traditional banks have”, he said.

In the North East, the bank has close to 12,000 own banking points with Assam having the highest of 10,600, followed by 642 in Tripura, 190 in Manipur, 120 in Meghalaya, 44 in Arunachal Pradesh, 36 in Mizoram and 34 in Nagaland.

Collectively, the bank plans to add another 5,000 points across all the North Eastern states by March 2023 while Pan India aims to double its network to over two million points in 36 months, Pandey said.

The ‘PHYGITAL’ network, a mix of physical outlets and digital platforms, comprises small business owners or merchants such as grocery shops, mobile repair, photocopy, stationery shop and others that are present in the neighbourhood with the small merchants becoming local bankers, he said.