The Hindu Business Line : HSBC to open branch at Lucknow soon

HSBC is opening a branch soon, by the end of the month or in the first week of January, at Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, which will be the 47th in the country, according to the Head, Personal Financial Services, India area management office, Mr Nicholas G. Winsor.

At a press meet here on Thursday, he said HSBC was offering a wide range of personal financial services and the group was concentrating on wealth management and NRI banking. It had so far issued two million credit cards.

Consumer finance

He said the bank had taken up consumer finance for the past year or so in India, reaching out to sections outside the pale of organised banking sector. "We are giving loans, in the range of Rs 27,000-50,000, and charging 45-50 per cent on them. It is a high rate of interest, but it is justified in view of the risks involved. People from the self-employed sector, middle classes and the lower income groups are making use of it. The response so far has been good," he said.

On consolidation in the banking sector, he said it was a welcome move. "It is always better to have a small number of big banks competing with each other rather than a large number of small banks. HSBC will also be in the business of acquisitions after 2009 in India, when the regulatory framework permits it. We have always made it clear that we want to acquire banks," he said.