New Bank in Banking Industry : Bandhan Bank

Share & Care.Follow us on www.facebook.com/careersorganisation

Newest commercial bank Bandhan Bank Ltd garnered a record Rs.80 crore in deposits by opening 60,000 new accounts on its first day. Yes Bank Ltd and Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd were the last to enter the banking space in 2004.

Bandhan Bank MD and CEO Chandra Shekhar Ghosh during the launch of the new bank in Kolkata on Sunday.

The bank offers 4.25% per annum on savings account for deposits below Rs1 lakh and 5% for deposits above Rs1 lakh

Here is what you need to know if you want to open an account with the bank or make other transactions.

Savings account: Bandhan Bank offers 4.25% per annum on savings account for deposits below Rs.1 lakh and 5% for deposits above Rs.1 lakh. As of now, major state-run and private sector banks offer 4% per annum on savings account deposit.

Some banks, including Yes Bank Ltd, Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd and IndusInd Bank Ltd, offer 5-7% per annum on savings deposit, depending on the amount.

Currently, Bandhan Bank offers seven types of savings account including an account for the differently-abled. Unlike major private and state-run banks, there is no charge for non-maintenance of a minimum average balance.

Fixed deposits: The bank is offering 8.50% per annum on fixed deposits (FDs) that mature in one to less than three years. Senior citizens will get an additional interest of 50 basis points (bps). One bps is one-hundredth of a percentage point.

In the past six months, major banks have cut interest rates on FDs. In fact, the fall in bank FD rates has been such that they now offer lower interest than small savings schemes such as Post Office Monthly Income Scheme and National Savings Certificate. For instance, State Bank of India is offering 7.75% per annum on FDs for 5 years and above. In comparison, the 5-year National Savings Certificate offers 8.50% per annum.

Base rate: Bandhan Bank has set its base rate at 12% per annum. Base rate is the minimum rate at which banks can lend to its customers. Currently, the base rate of major commercial banks has slid below 10%.

Loans: Right now, the bank is offering home loans, loans against property, two-wheeler loans and overdrafts against term deposits.

The interest rate on the home loan and loan against property are linked to the base rate. There will also be a processing fee of 1% or a minimum of Rs5,000 on the loan amount plus service tax, whichever is higher. Service tax is 14% of the processing fee amount.

In case of two-wheeler loans, you will have to pay 3% of the loan amount as processing charge.

Branches: The bank so far has 501 operational branches, most of them in rural or unbanked areas. Some of the branches will remain open all seven days a week. Bandhan Bank will also focus on doorstep banking, under which it will reach out to customers instead of the customers visiting the branch.

Automated teller machine: As on Monday morning, the bank has about 50 operational ATMs. Customers with a premium or special savings account will get unlimited free transaction access to Bandhan Bank’s ATM as well at ATMs of other banks.

Cards: The bank is currently offering five variants of debit cards on Rupay platform and plans to offer Visa-enabled debit cards soon. The next would be prepaid cards, followed by credit cards.

Mobile app: The bank has done a soft launch of its mobile app for its select customers. We will have to wait and watch for the features of the app.

Locker: You can even avail the locker facility at a minimum cost of Rs.1,000, compared with the minimum charge of Rs.3,000 in some large commercial banks.

Third-party products: Currently, the bank doesn’t offer products third-party products such as insurance and mutual funds.

Difference Between IFSC and MICR Code?

Share & Care. Follow us on http://www.facebook.com/careersorganisation

In the banking world, IFSC and MICR are common terms used for financial transactions such as transferring money through NEFT, RTGS. However, there are many who are still confused about the concept and importance of these terms. Let us try to clarify and understand the difference and importance of both the terms.

MICR Code:

MICR Code, stand for Magnetic Ink Character Recognition. This can be found in all the cheques at the bottom white line which is known as MICR Band. This code can be used for international transactions as well. This is used for enhancing the security in the transactions.

MICR is very old system, used for ensuring the safety and security of negotiable instruments, to facilitate the processing of the cheques.

MICR code contains the details of the cheque such as serial number, the 9 digit number. The first three digits represent the city, next three represent the bank and the last three digits indicates the branch. The code was introduced by RBI to make NEFT (National Electronic Fund Transfer) quick and efficient.

As MICR code is written with a special magnetic ink, thus fraud cases can be easily determined through check done by the magnetic scanner.

A typical MICR code is as: 110229003 wherein the first 3 numbers serve to identify the city code, center three identify the bank code and the last digits its branch code.

110 City Code 
229 Bank code
003 Branch Code

IFSC Code:

IFSC code stands for Indian Finance System code. This code identify all the NEFT participating bank branches uniquely.

This code is used by electronic payment system applications such as RTGS ( Real Time Gross Settlement), NEFT (National Electronic Fund Transfer), CFMS (Centralised Funds Management Systems).

To transfer funds, one needs to know the IFSC code, so that the beneficiary gets the funds directly in his account. There is no physical dispatch of cheques between the clearing house and the banks is involved. This unique code system is used for instant transfer of money using internet.

A typical IFSC code is as : HDFC0000351 wherein the first 4 alphabets serve to identify the bank and the last digits its branch.

Share & Care. Follow us on http://www.facebook.com/careersorganisation