ICICI Bank, India's largest private sector bank, announced its association with Alibaba.com for the launch of the Trade Facilitation Center, a single window facility to provide easy trade finance to the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in India.
The collaboration for Trade Facilitation Center will enable Indian entrepreneurs, who are members of Alibaba.com, to get quick access to an array of integrated business services from ICICI Bank including business loans, cash management solutions, foreign exchange transactions, bank guarantees and cross-border remittances, in addition to privileges and discounts.
"We are delighted to be the first bank in India to partner with Alibaba.com for their online Trade Facilitation Centre. ICICI Bank has been leading with innovations in the online space. This collaboration underlines our commitment to providing users with banking solutions that simplify their lives," said Rajiv Sabharwal, Executive Director, ICICI Bank.
"With this, we will offer to the members of Alibaba.com special propositions across our entire spectrum of business services ranging from accounts, letter of credit, bank guarantees, remittances, forex, loans and cash management solutions. We believe this access to quick and integrated banking will enable Indian entrepreneurs to propel their business on the global platform," he said.
This cooperation comes close on the heels of a slew of technology-led innovative services introduced by the bank.
"With Trade Facilitation Center, Alibaba.com expects to offer access to various financing, credit and logistics services provided by ICICI Bank for our Indian customers. We have also worked to sweeten this proposition by enabling Alibaba.com's members in India to enjoy better rates and discounts on ICICI Bank's products and services," said Bhushan Patil, Channels Director, Alibaba.com in India.
The list includes new apps for mobile banking, fully automated and round-the-clock 'Touch Banking' branches, Tab Banking, banking on Facebook and Twitter, the country's first contactless debit and credit cards, and 'Pockets', India's first digital bank on mobile phone.
ICICI Bank has 4,050 branches, the largest among private sector banks, and 12,451 ATMs (as on 31 March, 2015).
