- Business
- The Karnataka Bank Limited, founded in 1924 and headquartered in Mangaluru, Karnataka, operates as a private sector scheduled commercial bank in India with a network of over 950 branches, 1,180 ATMs and cash recyclers, and 580 e-lobbies across 22 states and two union territories. It provides a comprehensive range of banking products and services through four primary segments including Treasury, Corporate/Wholesale Banking, Retail Banking, and Other Banking Operations; these encompass deposit products such as savings accounts, current accounts, fixed deposits, cumulative deposits, cash certificates, non-resident ordinary rupee accounts, and foreign currency accounts; loan offerings including home loans, vehicle loans, education loans, personal loans, MSME loans, mortgage loans, gold loans, loans against property and fixed deposits, women entrepreneur loans, and specialized agricultural loans like Agri Gold Loans, Krishik Godham Loans for storage, Krishik Sinchana for irrigation, Krishik Pushpankura for horticulture and smart farming, Krishik Sarathi for equipment financing, and agro processing schemes; card products such as debit cards, credit cards, gift cards, deposit-only cards, image cards, and travel cards; insurance services covering life, general, and health policies; forex services including pre- and post-shipment finance, export bill collections, letter of credit advising, inward remittances, import letters of credit, bill collections, buyer's credit, and outward remittances; and digital services like KBL Mobile Plus, KBL mPassbook, BHIM KBL UPI, KBL POS Manager, MoneyClick internet banking, mutual funds, demat services, locker facilities, and funds transfer. The bank serves retail individuals, MSMEs, mid-corporate clients, large corporates, NRI customers, digital UPI users, agricultural clients, and street vendors under schemes like Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor’s Atmanirbhar Nidhi. Recent developments include the operationalization of its wholly owned non-financial subsidiary KBL Services Limited in 2021; multiple co-lending partnerships such as with Northern Arc Capital, Clix Capital via Yubi platform, and Satin Creditcare Network in 2024; strategic alliances for insurance distribution with ICICI Lombard General Insurance, Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance, and HDFC Life Insurance in 2023-2024; equity capital raises including up to INR 800 crore via preferential issue to institutional investors like HDFC Life in 2023 and 26.4 million shares to qualified institutional buyers in March 2024; digital initiatives like Digital Current Account in CUG mode, online dormant account reactivation, and 100% digital Xpress Cash personal loans; a leadership transition with Raghavendra Srinivas Bhat appointed as Managing Director and CEO in July 2025; and a strategic shift emphasizing growth in Retail, Agriculture, and MSME segments targeting INR 86,000 crore advances amid Q1 FY26 profit of INR 292 crore, stable capital adequacy at 20.84%, and focus on low-cost CASA deposits and asset quality management.