Axis Bank Collaborates With ITC To Provide Rural Lending Products To Farmers In Remote Areas

Axis Bank announced a partnership with FMCG prodigy ITC on Thursday to provide lending products and services to farmers who are part of ITC's agriculture ecosystem.

The collaboration is expected to help Axis Bank reach out to unserved and underserved farmers in rural areas.

"The Bank will offer a diverse range of asset and liability products, including farmer loans, gold loans, and so on," the company stated in a press release.

Axis Bank will use ITCMAARS (Meta Market for Advanced Agricultural Rural Services), a full-stack Agri-tech application, to connect with farmers and meet their financial needs.

Furthermore, the bank will offer a wide range of products and services to farmers through its rural-urban and semi-urban (RUSU) branches located in 656 districts across India.

"This partnership is in alignment with our Bank's Bharat Banking mission of extending our reach in the remote regions and providing them with seamless customer experience," said Munish Sharda, Group Executive & Head - Bharat Banking, Axis Bank. “We believe that by leveraging ITCMAARS' strong and long-standing relationships with millions of farmers, we can make a significant contribution to improving the community's financial situation and thus unlocking Bharat's true potential..."

"ITC has over the years spearheaded multi-dimensional interventions to transform the lives of farmers, powered by the ITC e-Choupal eco-system that connects with over 4 million farmers," said Rajnikant Rai, Divisional Chief Executive, Agri Business Division, ITC Ltd. “We have now implemented ITCMAARS, a phygital eco-system that provides a range of solutions through hyperlocal and personalized advisory, agri-inputs, financial services, and market linkages, as a step forward in bringing the power of the digital revolution to farmers."

In addition, the bank intends to expand its Bharat Banking strategy by increasing new-to-bank accounts in FY22-23.

As of December 31st, 2022, its rural advances were up 27% year on year, disbursements were up 12% year on year, and deposits were up 16% year on year.

Source- ET

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