HDFC Bank opens over 1,000 branches during pandemic

Kolkata,  May 5 As part of its “Project Future Ready,” HDFC Bank on  Thursday announced it added over 1,000 branches to its network over the  past two years.
During the pandemic, the bank opened two new branches every day, and 734 branches were opened in FY2022 alone.
HDFC  Bank also set a new record of the Maximum Bank Branches Simultaneously  Inaugurated Pan India on March 31, 2022, when 250 Branches were  digitally launched by Sashi Jagdishan, MD and CEO of HDFC Bank.

This record is officially recognised by Asia Book of Records and India Book of Records.
As  of March 31, 2022, the Bank’s distribution network was at 6,342  branches and 18,130 ATMs across 3,188 cities / towns. The bank had  earlier announced increasing its permanent employee
base by 90 per cent  with the total number of employees at 141,579 as of March 31, 2022.
The  wide retail network of branches across the country would help the bank  increase its presence as well as business. Branches are key points for  customer acquisition and retail branch banking has evolved in a  significant manner in the past few years. The bank’s transformation  journey under “Project Future-ready” continues with its foundational  ethos “Focus on customer.”
“Our branch banking strategy  is to re-imagine this channel by bringing more science to the art of  relationship management,” said Arvind Vohra, Country Head, Retail Branch  Banking at HDFC Bank.
“Our branches represent the Bank to  our customers, society and other stakeholders and they own retail and  business customer relationships. We are transforming our branches into  ‘phygital’ infrastructure assets. Through catchment scoping and mining  with institutionalised consistency we are leading customer-centric  conversations. This is enabled through our state-of-the-art IT  infrastructure and artificial intelligence-led predictive analytics. We  believe branches are key points to acquiring new customers, delivering a  best-in-class experience to gain a larger share of wallet, and building  customer loyalty. Nearly half of our branches are in semi-urban and  rural areas and we are continuously extending the bank’s reach with an  endeavour to support inclusive growth.”
In a major push  for its expansion, the bank had reported a 90 per cent increase in its  permanent employee base in the current financial year. The bulk of the  hiring of over 13,000 people were in the bank’s four broad Delivery  Channels – Branch Banking; Tele-service/sales (including the Virtual  Relationship Manager channel); Sales Channels aligned with the business  verticals; and Digital Marketing. These channels allow the bank to reach  the last mile, covering the length and breadth of the country.
HDFC  Bank, India’s largest private sector lender, had unveiled  organisational changes under “Project Future – Ready” in April 2021 to  power its next wave of growth. The Bank is reorganising itself into  three clear areas of Business Verticals, Delivery Channels and  Technology / Digital to further build its execution muscle in all the  three areas and be ready for the future. The creation of focused  business verticals and delivery channels will enable it to capitalise on  the opportunities across customer segments in the time to come.