Zoroastrian Co-op Bank registers robust growth; retail lending in focus

The Zoroastrian Co-operative Bank has shown excellent growth in Retail lending during the Financial Year ended March, 2023. While speaking in the Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders on August 25 in Mumbai, Yazdi Tantra, Chairman of the Bank said the numbers speak for themselves.

The bank’s overall Advances have registered robust growth of 27% and that the share of Retail Advances has increased to 60% in the total loans. That is a quantum jump in the share of Retail Advances in the past 3-4 years – from 26% in 2019 to 60% in 2023, informs a press release issued by the bank.

Similarly, fresh disbursements have shown impressive growth of 260% over the previous year. The Bank continues to have a strong Capital Adequacy Ratio of 26% as against the Regulatory requirement of 12%. The Bank’s net NPAs have declined to 0.43% (0.70% previous year) and its Operating Profit has shown the growth of 21.50% in the year ended March, 2023.

Yazdi Tantra, Chairman further emphasized that the Bank has successfully re-oriented its strategy to focus on Retail Lending for better Credit Risk Dispersal and enlarging the Customer base. He reiterated that the Bank’s lending rates are among the best in Industry. He added that the Bank has entered into a high growth phase as it is nearing its Centenary Year in 2027.He announced that the Bank is shortly enabling payments through Unified Payment Interface (UPI).

Daljit Dogra, MD & CEO of the Bank added that the Bank was taking a lot of initiatives to streamline various processes so as to enhance the efficiencies and improve the Turnaround Time (TAT). The Bank has adopted Software as a Service (SaaS) Model for its technology which is cost effective and offers a lot of flexibility to the Bank. The Bank has adopted Finacle (by Infosys) Core Banking Solution. The Bank has also strengthened its Human Capital by injecting fresh blood recruited from Business Schools as Relationship Managers.

Dogra informed that the Bank has planned automation of various activities like processing of Loan Applications, Customer Relationship Management, Internal Audit and Human Resources functions. The Bank would shortly launch distribution of General Insurance in association with Tata AIG. Distribution of Mutual Fund and Life Insurance products are in the pipeline and would be launched during the financial year ending March 2024.

Dogra said after a fabulous run in Housing Finance during 2022-23, the Bank has now focused its attention on Education, Vehicle and MSME Loans. The Bank is offering competitive interest rates on its Loans. The interest rates on deposits compare well with the market. For Girl students, the Bank is presently offering a concession of 0.25% in Education Loans.