future will be that which would be driven by the customers. this would require banks to create value for its customers and evolve a business model, taking into account the profile of existing and targeted customers and their needs vis - a vis the range of products offered. this would enable them to emerge stronger and more competitive. with higher technological and financial awareness, customers today are looking for banks to offer the following : • more choices in terms of product selection • simplified banks ’ forms and procedures • prompt services and alerts ( such as e - mail, sms etc ) • transparency of charges and fees • complete view of account relationship 15. coupled with this, there is an increasing use of alternate channels such as the internet and mobile devices, by customers. this impact has made the rules, in managing channels and the process of reaching customers, a moving target. banks would need to re - design their strategies and respond appropriately to the rules as they change. if banks do adopt suitable processes, it would bring about cost savings and, in the long term, more profitable customer relationships. customer empowerment 16. with a view to achieving higher focus of customer service, banks should be conscious of the customer needs and should take care not to cram too many additional features into products making them too complex to understand and use, as this could lead to a decline in customer experience. if customers want a particular service, technology can make it happen. so, the focus for banks should be on knowing and developing viable solutions and services suiting their customers ’ demand. banks would have to balance their service offerings across customer segments and provide a reliable and adequate of information. learning from the crisis, i urge upon banks to use technology to devise products and processes which are socially “ optimal ”. treading the path carefully 17. while doing so, banks must also be aware of the fact that data confidentiality is an issue that must be dealt with very carefully. this is an area of concern for banks and their customers. it is true that in the recent years technological advances have been made by banks in providing secured internet technologies to contain hacking and phishing. this has also enabled to put in place strong risk management processes within the bank. this must be continued by the banks not only to minimise financial loss but also, more importantly, to safeguard trust and confidence of their customers. banks, while designing processes, products and channels, must ensure that banking experience remains easy and simple for their customers. the long term success of any bank cannot

incentives. protocols and best practices for such eias may have to be drawn up taking into account the work done in the area of ascribing monetary values to the costs of threats to ecosystem and biodiversity and the benefits from such ecosystem services and biodiversity. i would like to take this opportunity to draw attention to hon ’ ble union finance minister ’ s budget speech for 2010 – 11, in which he announced a number of measures for addressing environment / climate change issues and preserving biodiversity. i am sure all concerned will take advantage of these announcements, actively support and involve in the initiatives for protecting ecosystems and preserving biodiversity. finally, i would like to close with a quote from the speech that hon ’ ble prime minister dr. manmohan singh delivered on june 30, 2008 while formally launching india ’ s national action plan on climate change : “ india has a civilizational legacy which treats nature as a source of nurture and not as a dark force to be conquered and harnessed to human endeavour. there is a high value placed in our culture to the concept of living in harmony with nature, recognizing the delicate threads of common destiny that hold our universe together. the time has come for us to draw deep from this tradition and launch india and its billion people on a path of ecologically sustainable development ”. it gives me great pleasure to inaugurate this teeb d2 workshop and wish it all success. thank you.