Postal Savings Bank of China
Postal Savings Bank of China has long led other Chinese banks in making its financial services available to individuals and small businesses in the country’s economically underdeveloped rural and inland regions. The bank also stands out for its willingness to go the extra mile to serve customers in these regions.
Granted, PSBC has a natural advantage over other Chinese banks – it boasts a very extensive network among domestic banks; among its roughly 40,000 outlets, more than 70% are located in small towns and rural areas.
The bank has made good use of that advantage: at the end of September 2017, it had provided a cumulative Rmb1.4 trillion ($221 billion) in micro loans; the balance of its loans to micro businesses exceeds Rmb640 billion, an increase of 11% from a year earlier.
While operating a network of brick-and-mortar outlets in rural and interior China, PSBC has also installed up to 100,000 ATMs and reached out to customers in these areas via the internet and smartphones.
In remote and mountainous areas where the bank doesn’t have outlets, it uses a fleet of vehicles to provide basic retail banking services for locals. The bank has also formed partnerships with government agencies, insurance companies and loan guarantee providers to extend its reach and to control credit risks .