Migrant workers turn towards banking for employment
Financial institutions dominant in the villages have seen queries for opening banking kiosks surge fivefold since the lockdown began

Source | economictimes.indiatimes.com | Saloni Shukla, Ashwin Manikandan
MUMBAI: Financial inclusion is increasingly getting a rural flavor – and opening up new business windows even as some others are shuttered. With the hard-hatted workforce leaving congested cities and heading back to their upcountry homes, banking correspondence (BC) is emerging as a lucrative option for many rural traders.
Hence, financial institutions dominant in the villages have seen queries for opening banking kiosks surge fivefold since the lockdown began.
“Earlier, we used to get 300 leads per day to open banking outlets; now we are getting about 800. Basically, these are people who have realised that banking is crisis proof and, especially, the young are opting to open banking kiosks,” said Rishi Gupta, MD, Fino Payments Bank.
Amid the lockdown, more than 10,000 such merchants were on boarded in April. “We expect to add 15,000 merchants in May,” Gupta said.