History of Canara Bank Limited

Canara Bank is a well-known Indian public sector bank based in Bangalore, India. The bank was founded in 1906 by Ammembal Subba Rao Pai and was nationalised in 1969. It deals in banking and financial services, from deposits to providing loans and other financial services. Outside India, Canara Bank has offices in London, Dubai and New York. The bank has gone through various phases of its growth trajectory over the last hundred years. It launched an IPO in 2002 and was listed on the NSE and BSE in India. Over time, Canara Bank has grown its market share to become a significant financial conglomerate with up to 13 subsidiaries and associate companies and sponsored institutions in India and internationally. Through a network of 9,653 branches and 12,114 ATMs/Recyclers across all Indian states and Union Territories as of June 2023, Canara Bank provided services to over 11.04 crore people. With effect from April 01, 2020, the Syndicate Bank was amalgamated into Canara Bank, and it issued 42,32,68,155 shares to the shareholders of Syndicate Bank.

Business Segments

• Treasury Operations: The bank deals with government securities under this business segment. During FY 2023, the bank maintained its position as an active player in the Government securities market as a Primary Dealer. This operation helped the bank to generate ~21.29% of revenue in FY 2023.
• Retail Banking Operation: Canara Bank serves customers through branch banking services. During FY 2023, the retail banking operations contributed ~46.81% to overall revenue.
• Corporate/wholesale banking operations: The bank also derives business growth from corporate customers by providing loans and other financial services. It derived 31.89% of revenue from corporate/wholesale banking operations in FY 2023.

The company has various subsidiaries including:

• Canara HSBC Life Insurance Company Limited (CHLIC): The company is a Life Insurance Joint Venture floated by the Bank in association with HSBC Insurance (Asia Pacific) Holding Limited and Punjab National Bank. Canara Bank holds a 51% stake in the company, followed by HSBC (26%) and Punjab National Bank (23%).

• Canara Robeco Asset Management Company Limited: It is a joint venture (JV) with M/s Orix Corporation, Japan, with the Bank holding of 51% Stake.
• Canfin Homes Limited: It is a sponsored entity of Canara Bank. The bank holds a 29.99% stake in the company.
• Canara Bank Securities Limited (CBSL): The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the bank. CBSL took over the Depository Participant services from Canara Bank on April 01, 2017.

Key Personnel

• Ammembal Subba Rao Pai, Founder

Ammembal Subba Rao Pai was a renowned attorney in Mangalore. He founded Canara High School in Mangalore and Canara Bank, one of India's top banks. Despite being a lawyer and a banker by trade, he had a passion for education and social transformation.

• Shri K. Satyanarayana Raju, Managing Director and CEO

Shri K. Satyanarayana Raju is a Physics graduate, post-graduate in Business Administration (Banking and Finance) and CAIIB. Shri K. Satyanarayana Raju took charge as Executive Director of Canara Bank on March 10, 2021.

Corporate Actions

• On April 01, 2020, the bank merged with Syndicate Bank, and after the merger, Canara Bank became India's 4th largest Public Sector Unit (PSU) bank.

Management Outlook

• Looking forward, the bank is optimistic about a positive outlook for the industry on the back of the resilience of growth momentum in the economy, supported by the government's focus on infrastructure development and other priority sectors.
• Canara Bank is focused on converting these opportunities into sustainable business growth and a further improvement in profitability while supporting government initiatives in nation-building.

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

• Launch of innovative products such as solar loans in collaboration with UNEP.
• Robust financial performance in the past.

Weaknesses:

• Limited business growth due to poor marketing
• Smaller customer base.

Opportunities

• Evolving digitalisation.
• Growing banking demand in rural areas.

Threats

• Intense competition from other private sector banks.
• Changes in policies from the RBI.