September 10, 2009

The unique identification (UID) number, once it comes into being, will be a great enabler of credit growth, and will immensely help banks expand their reach to over 60 per cent of the population which is currently unable to avail these services, senior bankers said."Instead of verifying various proofs like ration card, PAN (permanent account number issued by the income-tax department) card, voter identity card or passport, banks will be in a position to rely on the single UID (as a proof under the know-your-customer (KYC) norms)," said Kavita Venugopal, group president and chief risk officer of Yes Bank.

Speaking at a conference organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), she also said that being a technologydriven bank, Yes Bank was ready to modify its technology to make it suitable for the UID format.Banks have to verify the identity of their customers as part of the KYC guidelines issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which are intended to fight money laundering and misuse of funds by terrorists.