PUNE: Banks should continue to have a human interface while serving customers despite the ongoing massive drive towards digitalization, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday.“Digitalization has to happen. It brings greater inclusivity. But as this digitization happens, we must ask ourselves whether we are moving away from our customer base,” she said while inaugurating the local head office of the Maharashtra (excluding Mumbai) circle in Pune today. Till this shift, both the LHOs (Maharashtra and Mumbai Metro) of SBI were operating out of BKC, Mumbai.Sitharaman also focused on bank financing for older industrial clusters, especially small and medium enterprises.
Maharashtra, especially its eastern and south-eastern districts, is known for its micro, small and medium enterprises, which must be supported.In times of global turmoil, banks play a key role in boosting domestic consumption, Sitharaman said. She added: “Domestic consumption stood by us well when global markets were in turmoil and exports were hit. There is no doubt that despite the tariffs and other challenges, our exporters were able to find new markets and keep exports floating.”
About Mythos, she said that Indian banks are well prepared to face new challenges. “The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEIT) is in active talks with various authorities and governments from around the world and with technology companies to understand how this can be implemented and what preparedness we need in India,” Sitharaman said.
