Central Bank of India was dreams come true of Sir Sorabji Pochkhanawala, founder of the Bank. Sir Pherozeshah Mehta was the first Chairman of this Bank. Many more Indian banks were established between 1906-1911. This was the era of the Swadeshi Movement in India. Some of the banks are Bank of India, Corporation Bank, Indian Bank, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank and Central Bank of India.
Cradle of Indian Banking There was a district in Today’s Karnataka state called South Canara under the British empire. It was bifurcated in 1859 from Canara district , thus making Dakshina Kannada and Udupi district. It was the undivided Dakshina Kannada district. It was renamed as Dakshina Kannada in 1947. Four banks started operation during the period of Swadeshi Movement and so this was known as “Cradle of Indian Banking.
Bank of India was the first Indian bank to open a branch outside India in London in 1946 and the first to open a branch in continental Europe at Paris in 1974. Bank of India was founded in September 1906 as a private entity and was nationalized in July 1969. Since the logo of this Bank is a star, its head office in Mumbai is located in Star House, Bandra East, Mumbai.
The above discussion was of the first phase of Indian banking which was a very slow in development. This era saw many ups and downs in the banking scenario of the country and the growth of banking in the country was very slow.