CENTRAL BANK OF INDIA TO OPEN BRANCHES ABROAD

According to Mr. Rajeev Kishore Dubey, Executive Director, Central Bank of India (CBI) is planning to open branches in a host of countries, including China, Bhutan, Tanzania and Mozambique.

This is being done to get more international business and provide banking facilities to the Indians settled abroad.

The bank has launched Internet-based remittance service, called `Cent Fast2 India', in association with Bank of New York Mellon, for Non-Residents Indian residing in the US.

"The bank will achieve 100 per cent CBS (core banking solution) coverage by December 21 next year coinciding with the birthday of Sorabji Pochkhanwala, who founded India's first swadeshi bank on December 21, 1911," he said.

The public lender will provide services to 3,000 villages, having population of less than 2,000, by 2012 as part of the Government's financial inclusion programme using mobile telephone technology, he said.

"The bank will develop software in Gujarati and other local languages so that villagers do not experience difficulty in accessing banking facility," Dubey said.

The bank has targeted to achieve a business turnover of Rs 3,00,000 crore by the end of fiscal 2010-11. Turnover was Rs 2,46,000 crore as on March 31, 2009, he said.

SOURCE: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/banking/finance/banking/Central-Bank-of-India-to-open-branches-abroad/articleshow/6830957.cms