Guests appland lighting of lamp
FREMONT, CA: On March 28, the State Bank of India California (SBIC) opened its 10th US branch in Fremont, at a convenient location near Paseo Padre Parkway and Walnut Avenue. The Fremont branch hopes to serve the over 33,000 South Asian residents in Fremont alone and several thousand more in the Tri-city area. “Fremont is one of the most diverse communities and we are delighted that the State Bank of India California is here. We feel privileged and we assure you that it’s going to be one of the best branches you have opened,” said FIA Chairman Dr Romesh Japra.
The State Bank of India California hosted a dinner at Raja Sweets in Hayward, California, on Sunday, March 27, followed by a diya or lamp lighting ceremony and prayer in the presence of its officers, staff and people from the community at the inauguration ceremony on March 28. Those present at the inauguration were treated to a tour of the bank’s serene and warmly decorated office with elegant colors of beige and brown. On it’s opening day, people in the Bay Area opened new accounts and there were load of customers to do wire transfer to India.
Located at 39148 Paseo Padre Parkway, this branch is headed by Navdeep Sood, Vice President and Manager of the Fremont office. The parent bank, the State Bank of India, is the largest commercial bank in India in terms of assets, deposits, branches, and staffing. Other US branches are in Los Angeles, Artesia, San Jose, Fresno, Canoga Park, San Diego, Bakersfield, Tustin, and Washington DC.
The San Jose SBIC branch is located on Taylor and First Street. “Plans are already underway to open the 11th US branch in San Francisco,” Dinesh Pandey, President and CEO of SBIC told India Post.
People from the community along with Dr Japra, Jitu Somaya, Vrajesh Lal, Professor Dean McHenry, Susan Somaya, Mr Krishnan, Neelabh Sinha, and Joseph Selvraj were present as Mr Amrit Chugh lit the lamp to inaugurate the Fremont branch.
“We are happy to be able to open a branch in Fremont under the direction of Mr Dinesh Pandey and his team. We are looking forward to your support and we are here to help our community,” said Jitu Somaya, a philanthropist and a director of the bank.
“We hope that for many years there will be a close association between the bank and all of you. Thank you for being here and for being linked with the State Bank of India California, Vrajesh Lal told India Post. Professor Dean McHenry, a director of the bank, was very appreciative of the long affiliation of the State Bank of India California with the South Asian residents in the US.
Yogi Chugh, a long time Fremont resident and FIA officer, said, “We are committed to the fact that we are here to help. Help not only comes in words. We are here to come back and make sure that opening this branch in Fremont is special.”
The bank offers several products including savings accounts, NOW accounts, checking accounts, money market deposit accounts, and certificates of deposits.
Other services include commercial real estate loans ranging from $200,000 to 5 million, lines of credit, micro loans up to $250,000, business loans to medical practitioners, loans against cash collaterals, and several other products.
When asked whether the bank offers safe deposit boxes, Mr Pandey told India Post, “we have enough space to create safe deposit boxes and if that’s what our customers want, we will create them.”
The bank offers a minimum balance of $100 for individual checking accounts and a minimum balance of $500 for business essential checking accounts.
There is no fee for opening an account or for maintaining the accounts.
“One of our unique products is the wire transfer to India,” said Dinesh Pandey, President and CEO of the bank.
Kavita Arora is anchor and co-producer of Sitaarre TV
Kavita Arora
India Post News Service
