Mississauga: SBI Canada Bank, established in 1982 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the largest public bank, State Bank of India, has been serving South Asians and IndoCanadians in the hemisphere for more than 30 years. After three decades in downtown Toronto, the bank has now relocated its headquarters to 77 City Centre Drive in Mississauga.
“We have been in downtown Toronto for the last 34 years,” stated Siddhartha Sengupta, Chairman, SBI Canada Bank, at the formal inauguration on April 26. “It was not an easy decision to move. But having seen Mississauga, I am really heartened. I truly believe that this move will herald a new era and a new business performance age for the bank.”
Present on the occasion were Indian Consul General Dinesh Bhatia, Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie, former Senator Dr. Asha Seth and several leading professionals and business executives.
“Mississauga is home to 50,000 Indo Canadians and another 150,000, who identify themselves as South Asians,” stated Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie, who inaugurated the new headquarters. “We have over 86,000 businesses in Mississauga, several Fortune 500 companies as well as over 1400 multinationals. We are honoured and proud that SBI Canada Bank will now be calling Mississauga their new home.”
The bank announced a number of new and revised initiatives to facilitate customers. Clients of the bank will no longer have to wait for the customary 48 hours before their Indian account is credited with the remitted amount. Now the bank will enable instant remittances to SBI customer accounts and within hours to other bank accounts in India.
The Bank has also initiated a refinement of its retail internet banking services. “We have introduced enhanced features to include transaction rights for corporate clients. Our newest additions will provide clients with round the clock access to their money be it in India or Canada,” says Rajesh Gupta, President and CEO, SBI Canada Bank on April 26. “Our mandate is to continuously serve the banking needs of Indo Canadians with contemporary products and services and to also allow them to meet their individual requirements back home – whether it is to buy a house or invest in the country’s economic growth.”
Gupta stated their aim was to grow bigger with the Indian community continuing to flourish in Canada. “We’ve also touched a billion on our balance sheet this month,” he added. In June, the Bank is scheduled to launch mobile banking applications for retail customers that will enable clients to manage their daily banking needs and move and control their money from anywhere 24 hours a day at their convenience.
“We came to Canada because we felt we had a diaspora here to serve,” said Sengupta. “We believe that our niche is technology play and SBI Canada Bank will be rolling out many more contemporary products and services to this effect.” SBI Canada Bank currently has six branches in Canada – Toronto, Mississauga, Scarborough, Brampton, Vancouver and Surrey.