Equitas Small Finance Bank


Equitas Small Finance Bank is a small finance bank founded in 2007 by Equitas as a microfinance lender, with headquarters in Chennai, India. After receiving license from the Reserve Bank of India on 30 June 2016, Equitas began banking on 5 September 2016 as a subsidiary of holding company Equitas Holdings Ltd. With effect from 4 February 2017, Equitas became a scheduled bank. However, the company missed on RBI's mandate of listing within 3 years of commencement of its operations. Review from the Securities and Exchange Board of India and RBI is awaited.
The bank planned to build a network of 412 branches located in 11 Indian states by the end of fiscal year 2016-17. However, the bank is heavily committed to technology, with 83% of transactions occurring online as of July 2017. This includes the bank providing an RFID sticker to pay road tolls automatically, with settlements occurring digitally.

Equitas Development Initiatives Trust

Equitas Small Finance Bank established Equitas Development Initiatives Trust in 2008 to provide social services. In 2018, the bank committed 5% of profits to EDIT.
EDIT established Equitas Gurukul Matriculation Schools in 2010. By 2017, the schools were employing 400 people, and educating 5,700 students primarily from backgrounds that offered limited opportunities. EDIT also has a programme called Equitas Bird's Nest that seeks to help impoverished pavement dwellers. In March 2018, EDIT celebrated the milestone of improving the quality of life for 1,300 families in Chennai through this programme.

Penalties

On 1 March 2018, the bank was penalized ₹1 million by the Reserve Bank of India for rolling out investment, pension, and insurance services without obtaining prior approval.