Many districts lack banks despite high level of economic activities: Sitharaman

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said many districts in the country lack banking presence despite high level of economic activity taking place in those areas.

Addressing banking industry lobby grouping Indian Banks’ Association (IBA), Sitharaman asked lenders to augment efforts of deepening presence.

Giving the lenders the option to decide which place requires banking presence through a brick-and-mortar model and where a step-down presence would help, Sitharaman made it clear that she is not against digitalisation and efforts.

She said the banks’ books are much cleaner now and this will help the government as the recapitalisation requirements go down.

The finance minister also said the upcoming National Asset Reconstruction Company should not be called a “bad bank” as it is called in the US.

Banks need to be nimble and understand every unit’s need to achieve the USD 400 billion exports target, she said.