Punjab National Bank to open two NRI branches in Kerala
By Thiruvananthapuram: | 31 Mar 2003
Thiruvananthapuram: Punjab National Bank (PNB), which took over Nedungadi Bank recently, is planning to open two specialised non-resident Indian (NRI) branches in Kerala as part of its post-merger business strategy for the state.
The branches are likely to be located in Malappuram and Thrissur districts, says PNB deputy general manager N P G Nampoothiri.
On top of the bank’s list of priorities is reduction of the non-performing assets (NPAs) of the erstwhile Nedungadi Bank, which are currently over 27 per cent. The focus will be on account-specific tackling to bring down the level of NPAs to that of the bank’s national average of 5.5 per cent, says Nampoothiri.
Another major item on the bank’s agenda is to network all the 129 branches in Kerala and link them to PNB’s centralised banking solution in order to provide ‘anywhere banking’ facility to customers in the state.