Nickname: Banker

Review: I belong to the fraternity of Multinational bankers from India,and yes I do accept that the dream of becoming the best banking nation in the world is far,but some statistics in the article are worthwhile proof that we are on the right path!! Couple of facts: 1)Some urban Indian consumers are suckers for importance,which new age banking has started to offer.They have always taken customer service as their birth right for demanding better service. They forget that there are no free lunches in this world!!They will indulge in never ending comparisons of global standards, but would die to cough up even a penny!!Let's not forget that from an age of banking indoors, now Indian banks have reached the doorstep of consumers,so there's a huge amount of prospect that is yet to be tapped. 2)Approx. 4% of Urban Indian population pays tax,and unaccounted money is floating aplenty and hence international compliance standards are hard to implement for banks who are yet to reach out to the mass.

Date reviewed: Mar 15, 2006 7:52 PM

Nickname: Stephen Frank

Review: Well, I am going to sound like somewhat of an outsider over here. I just came to Canada and to tell you frankly, my experiences with the private sector large banks are very, very satisfactory, to say the least. I dealt with Kotak and ICICI and IDBI and they provide a much better service than all of the banks combined, including Scotia Bank, BMO and TD (Canada). They are just so primitive here in North America. In India you can withdraw money from the ATM any number of times you want. Here you can do it either five times or 10 times and if you use it more you have to pay. Here you even pay for checks, which is unheard of in India (at least the banks I dealt with). There are lots of other factors, too. When the NRI's and the Indian community go bashing the banks, you tend to overlook the above stated facts. Try to be appreciative for a change rather than just lambasting India at every opportunity you get.

Date reviewed: Mar 9, 2006 11:46 PM

Nickname: Jvc

Review: I would also like to say that this banking euphoria should be taken with a truckload of salt. The country's leading bank, ICICI Bank, known for its so called customer service, is worse at it than other smaller banks. It takes its biggest customer base, the retail customer, for granted. And engages in business practices which, even to put mildly, amounts to cheating if not fraud. However, there is hope alive in the other smaller players who can make the Indian banking story. But definetely not players like ICICI.

Date reviewed: Feb 26, 2006 8:15 AM

Nickname: rkj

Review: As an Indian, one must view all the Indian euphoria in the banking sector along with the sheer bureaucracy and inefficiency prevalent. Based on recent personal experience, banks like Standard Chartered bank cannot even implement an address change request for a customer for 12 days! Furthermore, mailing out statements is not consistent. Staff have no inkling of check clearing procedures, confirming checks written by a client can be cleared, only to inform three days later the check cannot be cleared and needs to be sent to--wait for this--the old address in a different city (for which the new address change is not implemented by them for 12 days!) The story is equally pathetic with State Bank of India.....it is a poor man's bank and as procedurally incompetent as they come, needing 7 HOURS to open a bank account in a branch for a client who is even invited to help the staff use the computer system to solve entry problems. Pathetic.

Date reviewed: Feb 25, 2006 5:29 AM

Nickname: Cynthia

Review: Here you go. Some encouraging stock news.

Date reviewed: Feb 24, 2006 8:41 PM

Nickname: Sher-e-punjab

Review: An excellent article that should prove useful to those who want to deal in finance and trade with India. B/A, City and JPMorgan can all gain provided they tap top- notch experts to run their operations.

Date reviewed: Feb 23, 2006 7:45 PM

Nickname: Pete

Review: Very good analysis. Useful to me for investment purposes.

Date reviewed: Feb 23, 2006 4:59 PM