THE OUTLIER

ICICI Bank is effecting a cultural shift to win over more customers. With a focus on service excellence and valuedriven engagement, the strategy is delivering impressive results

- ANAND ADHIKARI

KARMANYE VADHIKARASTE MA phaleshu kadachana,' this Sanskrit phrase from the Bhagavad Gita (it roughly translates to "You have the right to perform your duties, but you are not necessarily entitled to the fruits of your actions") seems to be the motto of ICICI Bank under Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Sandeep Bakhshi.

Focussing on efforts and responsibilities rather than obsessing over results seems to have helped Bakhshi effect a complete turnaround at the bank, not just in terms of financial numbers but also in the way it provides its services.

Those efforts include the 'One Bank, One Team' strategy, through which ICICI Bank is making products simpler to understand, decongesting processes, and shunning hard selling. And it seems to be paying off. The bank has emerged as the Best Large Indian Bank in the BT-KPMG Survey of India's Best Banks and NBFCs. A high-powered jury chaired by Jayant Sinha also unanimously recognised its achievements by awarding it the Bank of the Year title.

At a time when the banking sector is finding it hard to mobilise deposits, the Mumbai-headquartered bank has emerged as an outlier, achieving the highest growth in low-cost current account and savings account (CASA) deposits in the BT-KPMG study (see table on Page XX). This crucial metric not only drives higher returns for the bank, but it is also visible in the growing market share and stable deposits base of ICICI Bank.

What is fuelling this? Surprisingly, it's not higher interest rates on deposits or an aggressive branch expansion spree. Instead, ICICI Bank's edge lies in its unique strategy. "We don't consider CASA growth in isolation.

Instead, we prioritise enhancing services for our customers, each with their unique needs. Our goal is to earn and maintain their trust, ensuring they choose to stay with us, whether through CASA or FDs," reasons Sandeep Batra, Executive Director of ICICI Bank.