Uco Bank plans to open 11 more branches in AP

The Uco Bank is planning to open 11 more branches in Andhra Pradesh, in addition to the existing 66, and two of the new branches will be in Visakhapatnam region, according to Mr Khaleel Bhasha, the Assistant General Manager.

He was talking to reporters here on Friday after the inauguration of personal banking branch at Dwarakanagar, on the occasion of the bank's foundation day. He said the bank had made great strides in recent times, with 2,004 branches in the country and four abroad. The deposits as on December 31, 2011, stood at Rs 1,32,636 crore and advances Rs 97,825 crore.

He said that on the occasion of the foundation day,a credit camp had been organised in the branch. A prawn processing unit, set up by Seven Seas Aqua, was sanctioned Rs 2 crore and Mr Srinivas, the Managing Director, received the sanction letter. Self-help groups were sanctioned Rs 35 lakh, and a sum of Rs 40 lakh was also sanctioned for purchase of commercial vehicles to different customers.

Mr Bhasha said greater stress would be laid on retail lending at the branch. He said all the branches of the bank were networked and having core banking solutions. The bank had also launched “bank on wheels” for the first time in the country. A number of villages had been adopted under the financial inclusion scheme and the bank had also launched Uco Uthan, a scheme for the families below the poverty line.