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SBT 'COMMITTED TO KERALA WORKERS'MANAMA, Nov 10, 2011 (Gulf Daily News - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- The State Bank of Travancore (SBT) has no plans to open a branch in Bahrain but remains committed to serving the 300,000 workers from Kerala in the kingdom through its relationship with Bahrain Financing Company and other remittance offices. That was the message from SBT chief general manager S Balachandran during a visit to Bahrain yesterday. "Bahrain has a steady growing economy and a government that is very proactive and people who come here from Kerala want to take part in that prosperity," he said. "By providing them with accounts that they can access through remittance agencies, we are helping them to prosper," he added. He said that some four per cent of all remittances received at the Indian bank came from Bahrain and they were introducing a range of new products including instant money transfers and deposit options designed for both retail and corporate customers. These included premium rupee bonds and platinum accounts for high net worth individuals along with insurance options for Non-Resident Indians. He said the bank had 800 branches and 900 ATMs across 13 states in India and pointed out that 65pc of its business was in Kerala. The bank, which has 20pc of its shares owned by the public with the remainder held by the State Bank of India, has a customer base of more than 10 million. It has no branches outside India but works with remittance agencies across the globe to serve both retail and commercial customers. It has just launched its new instant money transfer service called SBT Fast in the Gulf. ___ (c)2011 the Gulf Daily News (Manama, Bahrain) Visit the Gulf Daily News (Manama, Bahrain) at www.gulf-daily-news.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |