Thursday, October 25, 2012

ABN AMRO Bank a familiar name

A clear focus on select and premium clients has made ABN AMRO Bank a familiar name among the über-rich in India

Moreover, the bank has used technology as the key differentiator to gain competitive advantage and create a unique customer value proposition. In fact, the implementation of a robust core banking solution back in 2001 enabled it to offer 24/7 integrated multi-channel banking and to be the first bank in India to realise the potential of the mobile channel. Further, the introduction of Van Gogh Preferred Banking (VGPB), a dedicated relationship approach to anticipate and provide for a HNI customer’s needs in 2002 gave it an edge with respect to its foreign competition and provided its banking business in India with a big boost. In this format, company representatives maintain one on one relationships with the demanding HNIs and help them with their portfolio needs.

But that does not mean that the bank has completely closed its eyes on the other segments of the society, which make over 90% of India’s total population. As a part of its microfinance program, the largest amongst foreign banks in India, ABN AMRO, with micro-finance institutions (MFIs) as intermediaries, is aiming at delivering credit to rural poor women. In fact, today, the bank services 26 MFIs across 16 states in India with over 3,90,000 customers, receiving small loans of $200 or less. “It’s our belief that business can succeed only in a society that is inclusive. Thus, in a developing economy like India, where agriculture is the source of occupation for over 70% of the population, priority sector lending plays a key role in the growth of the nation and the development of its people,” avers Meera Sanyal, Country Executive – India, ABN AMRO Bank.

Though, as a part of its efforts to get over the slowdown blues, RBS has placed its Asian Retail & Commercial Banking business in the “Non-Core” assets category, which it plans to dispose off in the next 3-5 years, the Edinburgh-based bank still remains strong in its major Asia Pacific hubs which include Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Sydney, China and India. But then, one cannot defy the numbers! As per a statement by RBS in February 2009, “impairments in the Asia retail and commercial banking increased by 44% to Rs.13.63 billion, reflecting an increase in provisioning levels across a number of consumer finance markets in the region.” This really put in a question mark on the future of ABN AMRO’s retail and commercial banking operations in India, which employs about 25% of the bank’s total workforce in India (ABN AMRO is present through 31 branches & has 10,000 employees in India).


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
 
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face
Posted by at
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , ,