Indian Bank has decided to set up 100 new branches in the current financial year. Out of this, the Chennai-based public sector lender has decided to dedicate 15 to micro lending.

Confirming the news, Indian Bank Chairman and Managing Director MS Sundara Rajan told reporters on the sidelines of a seminar organised by Skoch, "We have sought approvals from the Reserve Bank of India for the new branches."

Rajan also said that the bank would be emphasizing on retail lending and extending fresh loans to farmers who will benefit from the Rs 71,000 crore debt waiver scheme. He also felt that micro finance offered a good business prospect as it was ignored by many banks and there were low level of defaults last year.

Rajan also stated that the bank's other focus area was low-cost deposits. He expects the bank's current and savings account (CASA) deposits will grow at 35 per cent of its deposit base by the end of this financial year. The share of CASA deposits in the bank's overall portfolio is currently estimated at 33.07 percent.