A country’s money system is one of its most important assets. For a massive country like India, effective infrastructure for the public lending and borrowing system becomes critical.
The financial system in India is extensive, reaching out to every household, urban or rural. In this context, the importance of nationalized or government banks in India cannot be overstated. These government banks provide a solid foundation for such a fantastic banking system.
The various commercial banks in India, along with the governmental banks, relieve the Central Bank of a significant portion of its job. As a result, it is critical to discuss the predominance of several existing government banks in India, which control the majority of the present banking sector.
Government Banks in India
There are now 12 public or government banks operating throughout India. They meet societal requirements through a variety of schemes that aid in the reduction of poverty and other economic concerns. But, before we get going further ahead with this – you might want to know that though government or private, the working hours, days and Saturday bank timings are the same for all of the banks.
1) SBI
State Bank of India, India’s largest bank by assets, is the most well-known and dependable bank in the country. When the government took over the Imperial Bank of India in 1955, it founded the bank.
The bank is ranked 43rd on the list of the world’s largest banks. It has excellent global coverage, with 24000 Indian offices and an international presence in over 36 countries. With the establishment of different subsidiaries, it is quickly becoming one of the top financial service providers of all time.
2) Bank of Baroda
The Bank of Baroda was founded in the early twentieth century (1908) by a group of influential people led by Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III. It is India’s fourth-largest public sector bank, with a massive network in 24 countries.
It has over 132 million members and a system worth $218 billion, according to the most recent statistics. In 1953, it made its international debut in Uganda and Kenya. The government of India owns and controls around 63 percent of the bank. The bank’s key goals are to diversify its activities and serve as many people as possible who are looking for financial services.
3) Canara Bank
It is the third-largest government bank in India, having a global presence of 9877 branches in 7 countries. Ammembal Subba Rao Pai, a well-known lawyer, founded it in 1906. Canara Hindu Permanent Fund was its initial name, but after four years, it was changed to Canara Bank.
In 1983, it moved its headquarters from India to London. Since then, it has expanded to many other nations, including Hong Kong, Bahrain, and Sharjah. It has various moral ideals toward society, such as eliminating economic inequities and ignorance, fostering a savings and investment culture, providing financial education, and so on.
4) Bank of India
It is one of India’s most notable public sector banks. It was incorporated in 1906 by a group of well-known merchants. It has a massive banking network in India and beyond, valued at US$140 billion.
It has managed to expand in numerous nations throughout the years, with over 5100 branches worldwide. It manages to pique the public’s interest by providing them with money at extremely low-interest rates. Aside from that, it oversees NRI deposits, insurance programs, and so on.
5) Central Bank of India
This bank is known as India’s largest and most ancient government bank, with branches all over the country. It has a large presence and reaches India, with 4608 branches. In 1980, it was one of many banks to issue/provide a credit card facility.
Robotic banking is one of the Central Bank of India’s most recent efforts. It made the announcement by naming the created robot ‘Medha.’ It has expansion aspirations in London, Dubai, Doha, and Singapore.
6) Bank of Maharashtra
With 1900 branches scattered across the state, it has the largest government bank base in Maharashtra. V. G. Kale and D. K. Sathe founded it in 1935. It was founded with a one-million-dollar investment.
A. B. Vijayakumar is the current executive director of this Indian public sector bank. It is also well-known for offering financial services to small-scale firms, which contributed to the establishment of large industrial houses.
7) Indian Overseas Bank
M. Ct. M. Chidambaram Chettiar founded Indian Overseas Bank in 1937 in Tamil Nadu. It has a remarkable network of 3400 Indian branches and six international branches. It ranked second among Indian government banks in terms of digital transactions in December 2021. It cooperated with Max Bupa to provide various health and personal injury goods and products.
8) Indian Bank
It has a global reach of over 100 million consumers and 6004 branches, with its headquarters in Chennai. It has a global presence in Colombo and Singapore. In 2019, the bank combined with Allahabad Bank to become the nation’s seventh largest bank.
V. Krishnaswamy Iyer established the bank in 1904. It currently has 227 overseas correspondent banks scattered throughout 75 countries. To mitigate the painful effects of demonetization, it also created tech goods focused on assisting the poor.
9) Punjab National Bank
PNB, India’s second-largest public sector bank, was frequently in the news for its tremendous initiatives and public offerings. Dyal Singh Majithia and Lala Lajpat Rai founded it in 1894, making it one of the earliest financial service companies.
It has around 180 million customers and a network of 12,248 bank locations. PNB owns multiple bank subsidiaries in various parts of the world. It has offices in Dubai, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, and Kabul, among other places.
10) Punjab and Sind Bank
With 1526 branches across India, Punjab & Sind Bank has a well-known banking network, particularly in Punjab. Six hundred of the total branches are located in the state of Punjab. The bank was founded in 1908 in Amritsar by three men named Vir Singh, Sir Sunder Singh Majitha, and Sardar Tarlochan Singh. According to 2020, it earned a total of Rs. 8827 Crore. Its primary goal is to be a technologically sound bank with a strong network throughout the country.
11) UCO Bank
UCO Bank, founded in 1943 in Kolkata, was ranked 80 on the coveted Fortune India (Top 500) in 2020. It is expanding in overseas nations, with offices in Hong Kong and Singapore. G.D. Birla, an Indian industrialist, founded the bank. It currently has 3078 branches and over 2500 ATMs.
12) Union Bank of India
Union Bank of India is currently India’s fifth largest government bank. It was founded by Seth Sitaram Poddar and had a functioning network of 9316 branches, 4 of which are overseas. It has grown with fame since its introduction in 1919. With this merger, the bank became one of India’s top five public sector banks.
Conclusion
The banking system plays one of the most crucial roles in the world, and when you belong to the system – let’s be honest, you cannot actually go on without a bank. It is essential to know this system much better.
