Australia's Westpac bank enters India wiith branch in Mumbai
15 Nov 2012
Leading Australian banking group Westpac Banking Corporation announced the opening of its first branch in India.
It said the branch, located in Mumbai, will support Australian customers and a growing number of Indian customers with trade and investment links into Australia and Asia.
Westpac was founded in 1817 and was the first bank established in Australia. Today, the Westpac Group has branches and controlled entities throughout Australia, New Zealand and the near Pacific region and maintains offices in key financial centres around the world including London, New York, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Westpac general manager, Asia, Bala Swaminathan said in a statement, "Our Mumbai branch will help to deepen trade and investment flows with one of Australia's major trading partners, particularly in the energy, natural resources and agri-business sectors in which Westpac has significant experience.''
India is currently Australia's fifth-largest trading partner and fourth-largest export market with bilateral trade expected to double to A$40 billion by 2015.
''The opening of our Mumbai branch is an important step in our growth strategy in Asia. As the number one institutional bank in Australasia, we are in a strong position to support our customers to grow in the region,'' Swaminathan said.
