Catholic Syrian Bank - Introduction

Introduction

The genesis of Indian banking is associated to a large extent with Swadeshi movement, which inspired many Indians to promote Swadeshi banks in the beginning of the 20th Century. Catholic Syrian Bank was established on 26 November 1920 at Thrissur, which in later years acquired the unique distinction of being a centre with the highest concentration of banks in the South. The founder directors of the bank were people of eminence known for their foresight, integrity and initiative. The policy they laid down has been consistently upheld by the successive generations who guided the destiny of the institution. The bank commenced business on 1 January 1921 with an authorised capital of Rs.5 lakhs and a paid up capital of Rs. 45270.

During its first two decades, Syrian Catholic operated only in Kerala. Banks and credit institutions which proliferated especially in Kerala received a jolt and many of them came to their doom following the crash of the Travancore National Quilon Bank in 1938 followed by Palai Central Bank in 1960. During the period many small banks came to the verge of collapse shaking the confidence of the public and what followed was a process of consolidation. The strategy of mergers and amalgamations of small banks with bigger banks brought the number of banks within controllable limits, thereby making the industry's base strong. In 1964-65, Catholic Syrian Bank took part in taking over the liabilities and assets of five small/medium sized banks in Kerala. The expansion programme initiated during these years gathered momentum in the subsequent years.

In August 1969, the Bank was included in the Second Schedule to the Reserve Bank of India Act 1934. In 1975, the Bank attained the status of "A" Class Scheduled Bank when its total deposits crossed Rs.25 crores. The necessity of imparting training to staff looked very important and a modest beginning was therefore, made in setting up a Training College in 1975. In the same year the Bank entered the field of foreign Exchange. At a very early stage, the Bank recognised mechanisation as an effective tool of management and streamlined its accounting procedures by introduction of Data processing system. From November 1975, reconciliation of inter-branch accounts was mechanised by using IBM Data processing machines.

The decade of the seventies saw the evolution of a new culture in Indian Banking. Nationalisation of banks imposed "Social Control" and imparted new ethos to commercial banking. What followed was a massive expansion of bank branches with a distinct thrust on remote rural belts. Special schemes were formulated to cater to the diverse credit needs of small scale industries, road transport operators, agriculturists,and other self employed entrepreneurs.

Catholic Syrian Bank did not lag behind in taking up the challenge and more than 75% of its clientele belong to small and economically weaker strata of Society. The bank has a strong rural base with around 80% of the branches in rural and semi- urban areas.

At present, the bank has a network of 364 branches which includes NRI/SSI/Industrial Finance and Service branches. The Bank also plans to open more number of branches in a phased manner.