Unity Small Finance Bank commences its operations

By Leandra Monteiro

Unity Small Finance Bank Limited (Unity Bank), has commenced operations. Having complied with all requisite regulatory approvals, the Bank has begun operations in record time, with a quick turnaround from the RBI’s approval received on October 12, 2021.

Unity Bank is founded by Centrum Financial Services Limited (Centrum), the established and profitable small business lending arm of the Centrum Group and Resilient Innovations Private Limited (BharatPe), one of India’s fastest-growing FinTech companies.

Unity Bank will be a digital first bank with a business model of collaboration and open architecture, uniting all its stakeholders to deliver a seamless digital experience. The Bank commences operations with Centrum’s successful MSME and Micro Finance businesses and teams, a capital infusion of approx. INR 11 billion, total assets of about INR 24 billion, active customer base of over 200,000, 145 offices including a branch in Centrum House, Mumbai, getting off to a strong start.

Jaspal Bindra, Executive Chairman, Centrum Group said, “We thank the RBI for giving us approval to commence operations at Unity Bank. We aim to make it a truly New Age Bank. The Bank is well capitalized, significantly higher than the minimum regulatory requirement, giving us the platform to build a robust technological infrastructure, hire the best talent and work with credible vendor partners. The combined expertise of Centrum and BharatPe, business strengths and our proven success, will provide a strong foundation to drive growth in the Bank.”

“I would like to sincerely thank the Reserve Bank of India for granting us the approvals for commencing the operations of Unity Bank. We are committed to work tirelessly to build India’s first truly Digital Bank. With the capitalization and approvals in place, we will now focus on building tech-first products that will redefine the way India banks,” added Ashneer Grover, Co-Founder and Managing Director, BharatPe.