Saraswat Bank has a new logo

The 90-year-old Saraswat Co-Operative Bank has a new logo and also a revamped corporate philosophy and positioning. The new logo was designed by Umbrella which is headed by Bhupal Ramnathkar, a veteran in the advertising industry and a former executive creative director of Enterprise Nexus.

When launched, the agency was into strategic design, advertising, ad-film making, script writing, brand consultancy, etc. but now concentrates on specialist design.

The Saraswat Bank logo is an adaptation of a hexagon, like two protective hands placed over each other, as though "guarding" its customers and their savings. It makes use of red (known for warmth and auspiciousness) and yellow (symbolising wealth, dynamism, sunshine and optimism). Further, the colours are brighter in the centre of the design and create a halo effect.

The two hands are placed with a gap in between, which is shaped like a bolt of lightning, once again a symbol of dynamism and energy. The logo, at a subliminal level, looks like an 'S' (for 'Saraswat'). Astrologically, the yellow and red combination is a union of Mars and Jupiter, which is considered to be auspicious ('Raj Yog').

The font for 'Saraswat Bank', too, has been reworked and made simpler.

Umbrella has been working on the project for the last 10 months.
 
The earlier logo was red in colour and showed a bee in the centre of its hive (a hexagon shape), which symbolised that the bank collects and guards its customers' savings in the same manner as a bee collects honey.

Saraswat Bank is present in Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka, but now plans to expand nationally.

'A Sense of Belonging' is the new corporate thought, replacing 'Your Own Bank'.

Umbrella has an office in Mumbai with around 30 employees and has executed projects for American Express, Bates 141, Fun Square, Marriott, The Indian Cancer Society, Reliance Industries, Kalyani, St Bernard