Shivaji Gulab Dhegre, 22, owner of a small paan shop in Ghotawade village in Mulshi Taluka, 30 km from Pune, has never had a bank account. With just enough income to make both ends meet, he never thought of opening one.

Now, Financial Information Network and Operations (FINO), a Mumbai-based Biometric-enabled smart card solutions provider, along with the State Bank of India (SBI), is making an unprecedented offer to Dhegre and the 2,000-odd inhabitants of the village, mostly farmers and workers at nearby factories: a bank account (without a passbook), where they can deposit an amount as low as Rs 10.

What would be of more interest to the villagers is that they would not have to go to the bank to deposit or withdraw money. The bank would reach their doorstep.

“The accountholder is provided a biometric smart card, which has personal information and fingerprint details. When the accountholder needs to withdraw or deposit money, all he/she needs is to do is swipe the card on a special machine called the Point of Transfer (POT) machine, and enter the PIN number. All agents of FINO, who go door-to-door, carry the machine,” Ashish Rath, a management trainee with FINO, who is looking after the company’s ground operations in Ghotawade, says.

The maximum that can be deposited is Rs 50,000. If a customer deposits an amount over the limit, his account is upgraded to the main SBI branch. Kanhaiya Lal, a factory worker, who is set to open an account, says, “Even if you have a regular bank account, it makes sense to open this account, because the nearest SBI branch is at Pirangut, 8 km away, and the nearest ATM is at Hinjewadi, 25 km away.”

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