During the ‘Manthan Baithak’ held on Monday at Bharat Mandapam, special emphasis was placed on encouraging Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs) to become shareholders of the National Urban Cooperative Finance and Development Corporation (NUCFDC), the umbrella organization for UCBs across India.
States and Union Territories were urged to actively promote participation in NUCFDC to strengthen the cooperative banking network.
According to official data, out of the 1,484 Urban Cooperative Banks operating in the country, only 201 have become members of NUCFDC. Alarmingly, several states, including Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, currently have no UCBs registered as members.
In some other states with a relatively high number of UCBs, membership in NUCFDC remains disproportionately low, indicating a gap in awareness and engagement.
To strengthen and support UCBs, NUCFDC has launched a suite of specialized services aimed at enhancing institutional efficiency and regulatory compliance. These include Legal Advisory Services, Regulatory Compliance Monitoring, Technology Consulting Services, and a Virtual Chief Information Security Officer (vCISO) offering. These services are especially valuable for smaller UCBs lacking in-house expertise in these crucial domains.
In addition to these, several new initiatives are in the pipeline to support the digital transformation of the sector. These include the upcoming launch of Sahakar CBS (Core Banking Solution), Sahakar Cloud, Sahakar Cyber Security Box, and the Cooperative Council – Industry Expert Panel.
The Ministry of Cooperation has underscored the importance of actively promoting NUCFDC membership among UCBs to ensure broader participation and foster a cohesive, resilient urban cooperative banking ecosystem.
