Bandhan Bank started in 2001 as a not-for-profit enterprise that stood for financial inclusion and women empowerment through sustainable livelihood creation. It turned into a non-banking financial company (NBFC) a few years later. In 2015, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gave Bandhan the universal banking licence. On August 23, 2015, Bandhan Bank was born with a bouquet of products for customers in all segments. In all the avatars of Bandhan, the objective has remained reaching out to the unbanked and the under-banked, and providing last-mile banking for all, big or small. The core purpose has graduated from financial inclusion to inclusive banking.

The Bank is driven by a constant desire to serve its customers better. It offers world-class banking products and services to urban, semi-urban and rural customers. The experienced management, diversified team, and a well-entrenched distribution network, all of which makes the Bank well poised to meet the aspirations of customers and all other stakeholders, are its key differentiators. The service that the Bank provides to its customers stands out, as it strives every day to nurture every relationship, listening closely to customers, and bringing solutions to them that truly cater to their needs.

Business area of the Bank:

Bandhan Bank is focussed on serving the unbanked and underbanked population of India. It offers world-class banking solutions and financial services in the form of asset and liability products and services. It offers regular banking services, microfinance, MSME, and affordable housing finance to urban, semi-urban and rural customers. It works on the ethos of bringing those outside the purview of India’s formal banking marketplace within the ecosystem.

Awards and Recognitions:

2016-17:

• Bandhan Bank received the ‘Special Initiative Award’ for the year 2014-15 as part of FE INDIA’s Best Bank Awards.
  
• Bandhan Bank received the Bihar Mitra Award for Banking and Finance on Bihar Divas in Mumbai.

2017-18:

• Bandhan Bank bagged ‘The Hindu Business Line Changemakers Award’. It was selected as Changemaker – Financial Transformation (category).
  
• Bandhan Bank has been declared the ‘Best Private Sector Bank – Government Scheme Participation (PMMY)’ for the Dun & Bradstreet Banking Awards 2017.

2018-19:

• Bandhan Bank was declared as the winner in the ‘Noteworthy Lender to the MSE - Private Sector Bank’ category at the SIDBI ET MSE Awards 2018 held on January 2019.
  
• Bandhan Bank was given the ‘Best Bank of the Year’ 2018 at Moneycontrol’s ‘The Wealth Creator Awards’ in November 2018.
  
• Bandhan Bank received the award in ‘Best Performing Bank’ in terms of Aadhaar generation and update (using online client) at the Aadhaar Excellence Awards in October 2018.
  
• Bandhan Bank won the ‘Entrepreneur with Social Impact’ Award at the first edition of the CNBC-AWAAZ CEO Awards 2018 presented by the Chhattisgarh Government in July 2018.

2019-20:

• ‘Emerging Company of the Year’ at The Economic Times Awards 2019 for Corporate Excellence.
  
• ‘Best Bank’ and the ‘Fastest Growing Bank’ in the small size bank category at Businessworld Magna Awards 2019.
  
• ‘Fastest Growing Company’ and ‘Excellence in Business Performance’ at The Economic Times Bengal Corporate Awards 2020.
  
• ‘Best Indian Banking and Financial Institution’ at Times Business Awards 2020.

Major Events and Milestones:

• 2001: Bandhan started as a society that stood for financial inclusion and women empowerment through sustainable livelihood creation.
  
• 2001: Started microfinance operations in rural Bengal.
  
• 2006: Bandhan acquired an NBFC and established Bandhan Financial Services Private Limited, yet the core objective remained that of financial inclusion.
  
• 2009: The microfinance portfolio was transferred from society to NBFC.
  
• 2010: Bandhan became the largest microfinance institution (MFI) in the country.
  
• 2015: Bandhan Bank started operations as a universal bank on August 23.
  
• 2015: It became the first microfinance company in India to get a universal banking licence.
  
• 2015: On the day of the launch, the Bank started with 2,523 banking outlets.
  
• 2018: On the day of listing itself, Bandhan Bank emerged as the 8th most valued bank on the basis of market capitalisation.
  
• 2019: Bandhan Bank acquired the stake of HDFC Limited in GRUH Finance, one of India’s foremost affordable housing finance companies.
  
• 2020: The Bank set up its 1,000th bank branch and 4,000th banking outlet.