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Informist, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026

 

--Bank of India ED: Focusing on re-skilling workforce on AI 
--CONTEXT: Bank of India ED Subrat Kumar speaking at FIBAC 2026 
--Bank of India ED: Need to spend judiciously on AI tools 
 

MUMBAI – Banks need to spend judiciously on artificial intelligence tools, given the higher gestation period of the benefits, Bank of India Executive Director Subrat Kumar said Wednesday. "Ultimately, at a broader level, we want to see how much value we can derive by increasing revenue, reducing cost or enhancing productivity," Kumar said at Financial Institution Benchmarking and Calibration 2026 here. 

 

Kumar also batted for banks to not downsize workforce due to adoption of AI, but redeploy it. "In the era of AI, we believe in reshaping job profiles," he said. "Nature of job requirement has undergone change. We can re-skill, up-skill, provide domain-specific training so we can utilise existing workforce efficiently." He also cautioned that banks should adopt AI responsibly and with accountability.  

 

Meanwhile, Indian Bank Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Binod Kumar said at the same event that the lender was investing heavily - around INR 20 billion - in information technology. He also highlighted benefits from AI for the banking sector, adding that Indian Bank's special mention accounts have come down signficantly due to AI adoption. The lender's SMA accounts fell to INR 17.15 billion in the June quarter from INR 57.91 billion a year ago. 

 

"AI is here. It will remain here," Kumar from Indian Bank said "We should always think about cost benefit, revenue as byproduct. AI should be used with the aim of providing good customer experience, everything else will follow." 

 

AI could be of great help in solving human resource problems and Indian Bank was going for specialised recruitment in many sectors. "I think AI can remove all biases in recommending suitability of postings," Kumar from Indian Bank said.

 

Indian Bank reported over 10% on-year growth in its net profit for the June quarter at INR 32.73 billion. Bank of India's net profit for the June quarter was INR 30.68 billion, up over 36% on year. 

 

At 1330 IST, Bank of India's shares were at INR 144.61 on the National Stock Exchange, up over 1% from the previous close. Indian Bank's shares were at INR 891.60, up almost 2% from the previous close.  End

 

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Reported by Pratiksha, Sagar Sen and J. Navya Sruthi

Edited by Avishek Dutta

 

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