The state run public sector bank, State Bank of India (SBI), one of the largest public sector banks across the globe, has worked out several strategies and leveraged advanced technologies for taking banking and financial system to every nook and corner of the country. They further supplemented their efforts through increasing financial literacy by setting up several financial literacy centres across the country. Their continued focus on development of innovative technologies enabled seamless merging of rural populace with their urban counterparts in availing banking services.
Field research and a series of in-depth interviews were carried out with top and working level leadership of the SBI on challenges faced by them in traversing this path to expand their rural footprint and how they collaborated with local NGOs and microfinancing institutions (MFI) to reach some of the most difficult geographic terrains like Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The paper articulates key insights to understand the importance of financial inclusion in a developing economy and also identifies the complexities and factors influencing its successful implementation. The paper serves as a guideline for developing economies, in strategizing their own methodologies in implementing financial inclusion.