Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, who inaugurated the formal operations of Mega Bank, expressed the hope that the bank would play an important role in increasing general people´s access to banking services and help uplift the living standard of the people.[break]
Officials of the bank too made commitments to expand banking services to the segment of the population that have so far remained out of it. According to reports, only 30 percent of Nepalis are presently availing the banking services.
“We have the target of reaching to the 70 percent of the population who have no access to banking services,” said Anil Shah, chief executive officer (CEO) of Mega Bank, which has the largest number of shareholders in comparison to other banks.
To attain that, Shah said the bank would invest in new sectors, particularly those that have forward and backward linkages to the rural areas. He also said the bank would also open branches in the remote parts of the country to achieve its goal.
As a part of its plan to invest in diverse sectors, ranging from agriculture to hydropower, the bank said it has already started issuing credits to sugarcane farmers in Sarlahi district.
According to Shah, the bank operating with paid-up capital of Rs 1.63 billion has already collected deposits worth Rs 1.70 billion. It has further informed to have made loan investment worth Rs 2.10 billion over the period.
“We have targeted to set up 12 branches within this fiscal year. And within five years, we will increase our branches network to 50,” Shah added.
He further added that the bank would invest in areas such as hydropower, cement, dairy and whole flour industry and has placed consumer loans under its priority sector. “Consumer loans are not considered to be productive. However, we believe this area has a huge potential to directly benefit the middle class population and raise living standard,” Shah said.
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