In the developed countries, banking facilities are available for everyone. However, in India, millions of people can never think of going to a bank and enjoy its facilities. Many people, living in the rural areas, do not have access to banks. Even thousands of people living in the slums in the large Indian cities have the same problem. One reason is that many people in India are illiterate and for them it is almost impossible to carry out the formalities in a bank. As a result, there is a huge untapped market for the banks in India. Citigroup Inc. has realized the potential of this market and is now going to invest to take banking facilities to the slum dwellers in India.
Los Angeles Times reported:
Citigroup Inc. is rolling out a network of biometric automated teller machines aimed at illiterate Indian slum dwellers, using the latest technology to woo the millions of "unbanked" poor.
The machines will recognize account holders' thumbprints, eliminating the need for a personal identification number, and will have color-coded screen instructions and voice-overs to guide them through transactions.
Citibank has set uptwo such ATMs in Mumbai and Hyderabad. More than 50% of people in India do not have a bank account. So, you can easily see the market potential. Well, at this moment, the facility will be mainly limited to urban poor people. In the rural areas, electricity is most of the time and places not available. So, the rural Indians would have to wait for few years.
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