State-owned Punjab & Sind Bank will double its ATM network to about 1,600 in the next two years to expand its touch points and brand visibility. Besides, the bank also plans to open 50 more branches during the current financial year, taking the total network beyond 1,600, Punjab & Sind Bank managing director Swarup Kumar Saha. He said that adding new branches would add to low-cost deposits and help in the penetration of loan products.

"We are trying to build operational efficiency more so that I can reduce my cost and increase my fee income. We are moving to very granular areas like increasing ATM network, improving digital banking experience," he said. He said the ATM network can itself be a profit center because the outside customer pays about Rs 17 per transaction for the use of an ATM machine. The bank is in the process of upgrading its core banking solution (CBS), which would help the digital journey much better and also bring in efficiency, he said.

With regard to recovery, Saha said the outlook for the current financial year is Rs 1,500 crore and take all efforts to achieve the target. The bank intends to pre-load recovery and sensitize all borrowers about the virtues of debt servicing, he said. The bank is also keeping a close tab on slippages and it should not exceed more than Rs 900 crore during the year, he added.