PM Modi launches Jana Small Finance Bank’s Digital Banking Units in Bihar and Jharkhand

Bengaluru, Karnataka: The Honourable Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated the Jana Small Finance Bank’s first digital banking unit in the districts of Bihta in Bihar and Bero in Jharkhand. Jana SFB is the only small finance bank selected for the launch of DBUs in India.

This launch was a part of the Central government’s announcement to launch 75 digital banking units (DBUs) to strengthen the digital economy, as the nation celebrated its 75th year of independence this year, and the districts were allotted to selected banks. During the inauguration of seventy five selected branches, the PM virtually interacted with the staff and other stakeholders.

Other than Bihta and Bero, Jana Small Finance Bank has also set up one more digital banking unit in Motipur (District Muzaffarpur, Bihar). These DBUs are opened to ensure the digital awareness, acceptance, and adoption of customers, thereby achieving the government’s Financial Inclusion strategy via self-help, the dissemination of digital skills, community connectivity, and financial advisory initiatives.

The Bihta DBU branch deserves special recognition because it is the only one of its kind to be exclusively staffed by women, who will help customers learn how to use digital products and services.

The Bihta DBU and Bero DBU was virtually inaugurated by the Prime Minister, where he interacted with the branch members, in the presence of Ajay Kanwal, MD and CEO of Jana Small Finance Bank. Honourable Minister of state for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, Member of Parliament Ram Kripal Yadav and Ranjit Kumar (SHO-Bihta) were the other dignitaries present at the event of DBU launch in Bihta, Bihar. Minister of state for Education Annapurna Devi, Member of Parliament Sudarshan Bhagat and Manish Kumar Gupta (SHO-Bero) were the other dignitaries present at the event of DBU launch in Bero, Jharkhand.

The concept of digital-only banks was unveiled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Financial Budget 2022. DBUs are aimed at improving the ease of doing business. They also enhance customer experience by enabling them to have a touch and feel of doing transactions digitally. Apart from the Digital services available, Jana SFB also provides Aadhaar services (Aadhaar creation and updation) to its customers.

Ajay Kanwal, MD and CEO, Jana Small Finance Bank, said, “Jana Small Finance Bank serves financial inclusion with a strong digital backbone and execution -98% Bank transactions are already done through digital modes. We are honoured with our DBUs launch by the Honourable Prime Minister. We will continue to innovate with new products and services which meet the needs of the underserved.”

These branches are equipped with the ‘DigiGen’ digital banking platform, kiosks, cash recycler machines, etc. The model of the digital banking unit is new and evolving. Basis the experience in these three DBUs, Jana Bank will also expand its services to more towns across India. With the launch of these three DBUs, Jana Bank will have a presence of 48 branches including 19 in Bihar and Jharkhand and 723 nationally with 267 (~37%) in unbanked rural branches