Axis Bank Ltd.

Axis Bank is looking to scale up its retail operations by cashing in on the demand in smaller cities. The bank aims at increasing the share of retail loans to 30% of total loans from the current 21% in the next three years. For peers such as ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank retail loans account for close to 40% and 50%, respectively, of the total loan book.

The bank’s retail loan portfolio stood at Rs 29,343 crore at the end of September. Currently, loans to large and medium-sized firms account for 55% of the bank’s loan book. In line with the business strategy, half of the bank’s 1,200 branches are in smaller towns. The lender also has 85 retail lending offices that process loans in towns such as Bhavnagar, Belgaum, Jhansi and Rohtak.