In an effort to strengthen financial access and empower women entrepreneurs in the state, BLS E Services has announced a major expansion of its Customer Service Point (CSP) network throughout West Bengal.

The company currently runs more than 1,600 CSPs, and over the next three to five years, it plans to scale this to 5,000 CSPs. In rural and semi-urban areas, these Business Correspondent (BC) locations serve as extensions of bank branches, offering crucial last-mile banking services.

With more than 20% of CSPs led by women, women remain at the forefront of BLS E Services’ national BC ecosystem. The organization currently has more than 330 female CSPs in West Bengal, and in the upcoming years, it hopes to increase that number to more than 1,000. This program seeks to improve economic opportunities at the local level and increase women’s involvement in the financial services industry.

“West Bengal is one of our most important markets, and our expansion plan reflects our long-term commitment to the state’s financial inclusion journey. We hope to build a more robust and inclusive financial ecosystem by greatly expanding our CSP footprint and empowering more female entrepreneurs. Enabling last-mile access, improving service delivery, and making sure that every household can contribute significantly to India’s financial and digital growth narrative are our main priorities,” said Mr. Lokanath Panda, COO of BLS E Services.

West Bengal’s excellent results under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) demonstrate the state’s preparedness for more extensive financial inclusion programs. With 5.65 crore Jan Dhan accounts and ₹27,981 crore in PMJDY deposits, the state is ranked #2 in India, indicating one of the highest levels of banking penetration in the nation. Active and involved account holders are highlighted by the average account balance of ₹4,954, which is significantly higher than national dormancy benchmarks.

“BLS E Services is moving toward Financial Inclusion 2.0, going beyond basic deposit services to provide a complete range of financial products, such as mutual funds, credit, insurance, and NPS. Through a variety of service offerings, this evolution is anticipated to improve customer value and open up higher earning potential for CSPs,” added Mr. Panda.

The organization expects increased access to Central Government programs following the election of a new government in West Bengal, which is anticipated to hasten the results of financial inclusion. West Bengal is positioned as a key market in India’s next stage of financial inclusion due to the convergence of national and state-specific initiatives.

Priyanka Dutta