Srinagar: J&K Bank on Thursday hosted 85th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of its shareholders for the financial year 2022-23 here at Kashmir International Convention Centre (KICC).
The meeting themed as ‘Unleashing the power of shared prosperity : facilitating Atma-Nirbharta’ was the first shareholders meet organised in-person by the Bank after holding three consecutive AGMs virtually due to Covid19 guidelines.
MD & CEO JK Bank, Baldev Prakash chaired the meeting in presence of Advisor to LG Ladakh Dr Pawan Kotwal representing Ladakh Administration as Additional Director on Bank’s Board, Principal Secretary Finance, Santosh D Vaidya representing majority share-holder and promoter i.e. J&K Government on the Bank’s Board along with other Directors-on-Board of the Bank. Amid a large number of valuable shareholders, the meeting was also attended by the Bank’s General Managers, Deputy General Managers, Company Secretary and other officials.
MD & CEO Baldev Prakash began his address to the shareholders by congratulating the countrymen in general and the scientists of ISRO in particular over the historic landing of India’s Chandrayaan-3 on the far side of the moon.
While expressing pleasure over the first in-person shareholders meeting after three years, MD & CEO Baldev Prakash stated, “What makes this event further special is that all of you are joining us on the occasion when the country is also celebrating its Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav on account of 75 years of independence.”
MD & CEO also acknowledged and appreciated the support of Bank’s various stakeholders on the occasion by saying, “I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you, particularly our shareholders and the governments J&K and Ladakh, for unwavering support and trust in this institution. It is because of your continued faith that we have been able to achieve remarkable milestones over the past year.”
Giving an overview of country’s banking sector, he said, “Driven by increased infrastructure spending, rapid project implementation, and ongoing reforms, the banking sector in India is well poised for robust progress. Credit has seen double-digit growth in FY2022-23 and the trend is expected to continue in FY24.”
Summing up the Bank’s recent performance, MD said, “Our transformational journey for the last few years has been quite eventful and happening. Bank has witnessed remarkable performance across the business parameters as reflected in our Annual Results for the FY2022-23. And in recognition of this outstanding performance, I am delighted to announce that the Board of your Bank has recommended a dividend of ₹0.50 per equity share of Re.1/- each fully paid for the financial year ended March 31, 2023.”
“This decision reflects our commitment to sustainable growth and maximizing shareholder value”, he added.
While acknowledging that the Bank’s success is intertwined with the success of its customers, he said that the Bank continues to invest in enhancing customer experience, streamlining processes, and offering innovative financial solutions to meet their evolving needs. “We are committed to staying at the forefront of digital banking, ensuring our customers have access to seamless and secure banking experiences. Our flagship mobile banking platform J&K Bank mPay is under upgrade and the revamped app named M-Pay Delight + which will be made available shortly offers a next level experience integrating m-Banking, e-Banking, UPI, IMPS into one single application providing a unique “Bank in the Pocket” experience. We are determined to become one of the technologically smart banks in the country”, he said.
Expressing confidence to continue on the path of sustainable growth, he asserted “With the unwavering support of our shareholders, the dedication of our employees, and the trust of our customers, I am confident that we can face any challenge and would continue to unleash the power of shared prosperity.”
Earlier, the Bank’s Company Secretary Mohammad Shafi Mir read out the Auditor’s Report, comments of Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG, comments of Secretarial Auditor besides providing brief background of each business item. He further informed that the results of e-voting along with the scrutinizer’s report will be available on the websites of the Bank/RTA/Stock Exchanges within two working days from conclusion of the AGM.
Notably, the share-holders congratulated the Bank’s Board, management and employees for the historic results and expressed gratitude for the announcement of dividend for the financial year 2022-23. “The Bank’s Board, management and staff deserve appreciation for the Bank’s annual performance and gratitude for the announcement of dividend. We hope the Bank would continue to perform better and keep on adding value to our investments in future as well”, said few shareholders at the meeting.
The meeting concluded with a question-answer session, wherein MD & CEO Baldev Prakash listened to a range of questions from shareholders and responded in detail to every query to the satisfaction of participants.
