Bringing ATMs to India

Citigroup Inc. has a plan to install between 25 to 35 automated teller machines in India over the next 18 months in hopes of targeting approximately 50,000 people and the millions of poor people in the country without bank accounts.

The tellers target the poor and illiterate who are living in the rural areas of the country who may not necessarily have access to the banks or even information about banks and opening accounts.

The machines have the ability to recognize the account holders' thumb prints so that people do not have to memorize a personal identification number. The ATMs will have color-coded screen and voice instructions for users.

Two of these ATMs have already been installed in India. One is in Bandra (a neighborhood in India's financial capital).

The move by Citigroup is seen as part of a larger trend in the country which is attempting to get more people to open and use a bank account.

Within India, more banks are beginning to pander to the lower income residents and the numbers within the country explain why. About 300 million bank accounts are currently open in India today; the country has a population that numbers more than one billion people.

The country's largest bank ICICI Bank Ltd. is also getting in on the action by offering biometric cards and portable devices that allow illiterate farmers to make transactions in rural areas where ATMs are not commonplace.

The race to arm more Indians with bank accounts comes at a time when the world is holding its breath in the race between India and China - two countries that are developing at rapid speeds. Economists are waiting to see who will come out at the top and it may take years to understand the conclusion.

While China is outputting more and in general doing things on a much larger scale, many experts have their money on India's development stating that the country is investing more on technology and the education sector turning out more people who are able to troubleshoot or work in information technology. In contrast China, maintains its success through manufacturing jobs and cheap, unskilled labor.

The move towards encouraging more bank accounts in India is part of this watch economists are doing with interest right now between India and China.

Should more individuals choose to open accounts in India it could lead to greater savings and the rise of a larger middle class. China is already seeing a rise in its middle class due to the ease of acquiring credit in the country, which is obviously not a very stable source of money.

For now, most are watching and waiting to see what affects more bank accounts and ATMs will have on the country, its economy and of course, its people.