AU Small Finance Bank

AU Small Finance Bank Limited
TypePublic
ISININE949L01017
Industry
Founded1996 (1996)
FounderSanjay Agarwal
Headquarters
Area served
India
Key people
RevenueIncrease ₹9,293 crore (US$970 million) (FY23)[2]
Increase ₹1,427 crore (US$150 million) (FY23)[2]
Total equityIncrease ₹6,275 crore (US$650 million) (2021)
Number of employees
59000+
RatingCRISIL AA+ Stable[3][4]
Websitewww.au.bank.in

AU Small Finance Bank Limited is an Indian scheduled commercial small finance bank,[5] headquartered in Mumbai. It was founded in 1996 as a vehicle finance company and was converted into a small finance bank in 2017. That same year, it got listed on National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).[6]

It received the "India's Top 50 Companies to Work for 2025" award from the Great Place to Work.[7] As on March 2026, the bank serves around 1.2 crore customers through (approx) 2790 touchpoints, across 21 states and 4 union territories. The same has been supported by 59,200+ workers and a balance sheet exceeding Rs. 1.9 lakh crore.[8]

History

The company was founded in 1996 by chartered accountant Sanjay Agarwal as AU Financiers (India) Ltd, a vehicle finance company and an NBFC. It converted into a full-fledged small finance bank on 19 April 2017.[9]

In 2003, the company received the RBI registration as an asset financing company. And in 2015, RBI gave the organisation an approval to set up a small finance bank.[10]

In 2012, associate company AU Insurance Broking Services Private Limited (established in 2011) received its Insurance Broking Agency License.[11]

In the 2013, private equity firm ChrysCapital acquired a 10.01% stake in AU Financiers (now AU Small Finance Bank) for ₹120 crore through secondary market purchases from existing investors and founders.[11]

AU Small Finance Bank listed publicly through an IPO on 29 June 2017.[9][12][13] Private equity companies that provided venture capital, including Warburg Pincus and International Finance Corporation, divested their holdings after the listing.[14][15]

In November 2017, the Reserve Bank of India added the bank to its schedule of commercial banks.[16] In 2018, the bank was included in the Fortune India 500 list for the first time. In 2021, the bank launched AU 0101 digital banking app, and entered the credit card market.[10]

In 2023, they become the first small finance bank to offer 24x7 digital banking services.[10] On 1 April 2024, AU Small Finance Bank completed the acquisition of Fincare Small Finance Bank through a stock swap merger, the first merger involving two small finance banks.[17][18]

On 7 August 2025, the Reserve Bank of India granted an in-principle approval to AU Small Finance Bank to transition into a universal bank,[19] making it the first small finance bank in India to receive such an approval.[20] It was also the first full-fledged banking license issued by the Reserve Bank of India in 11 years.[21] The same year, the bank crossed INR 1,50,000 crores in total business, including both deposits and advances as well.[10]

In February 2026, AU small finance bank launched a series of savings accounts for all customers. These bank accounts includes, AU Digital, AU Royale World, AU Platinum, AU Value and AU Vikaas.[22] The same has been built for women, senior citizens, students, NRIs and salaried professionals. Each variant of account is meant to serve the interests of different kinds of people, varied banking preferences and lifestyles.[22]

In May 2026, the employee count of the bank declined due to the usage of AI and AI automation tools to increase productivity and business growth. The business momentum remained strong, and asset quality improved. The bank opined that this measure was farsighted, and will promote profits in the long runs.[23]

In July 2026, AU Small Finance Bank announced the inauguration of its new office, 'AU Bank Capital House' at the World Trade Centre, New Delhi. The space will serve as the key office for the bank's senior leadership.[8] The space also offers a full range of banking services, across retail, MSME, wholesale and digital segments, to serve the interests of customers and institutions. This will ensure that closer engagement, support seamless execution of strategic interventions and strengthening the presence of the organisation.[8]

Operations

AU Small Finance Bank has a network of 2,726 physical touchpoints in 21 states and 4 union territories, 59,000+ staff, and a total customer base of about 1.25+ crore as of 30 April 2026.[24]

CSR/BRSR Activities

The priorities of the sustainability activities of the bank includes economic, governance, social and environment. The sectors of impact was social development, building a better society by ensuring livelihood options, empowering women, skill enhancement, financial literacy and education.[25] The principles of these activities include ethics and governance, that is, trust and transparency was maintained among all stakeholders; sustainable products and services; employee welfare; responsiveness towards stakeholders; respect and promotion of human rights; environment protection; advocacy of public policy; inclusive growth; and customer value.[26] The programmes undertaken by the bank includes- AU Udyogini (empowering women entrepreneurship), AU Skills Academy (Empowering Self-Reliance), Sports for Development (Making a healthier India), and Financial and Digital Literacy Initiative (Empowering with financial knoweldge and wisdom).[27]

Another one of the key initiatives of the bank is financial exclusion. According to the BRSR report of FY20, they undertook different policies to ensure that more people come under the ambit of financial banking.[28] These policies included priority sector lending, financial literacy and education, driving financial inclusion through technology and through employees that take services to many underbanked areas.

Environmentally, there were many initiatives undertaken by the bank to ensure that a sustainable impact was made by the bank. This includes reduction of carbon footprint through conservation of energy, advanced setting power use interface, reduction in fuel consumption, among many initiatives. Virtualising information centres and servers, managing energy through e-waste management, and technology absorption, were other significant endeavours pursued by the bank.[29]

Employees

The office has been made accessible and, according to Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, and the Harmonized Guidelines for Standards of Accessibility. As of the latest year of reporting, 28 disabled people individuals.[30] The office has provided the disabled employees with a bunch of accessibility facilities, like braille-signages and wheelchair-friendly pathways. The diversity and inclusion wing of the bank has also ensured that there is a strict compliance to a non-discriminatory work environment that promotes a lack of bias.[31]

Other Initiatives

Suhana Safar

AU Small Finance Bank, in partnership with Maruti Suzuki India launched an industry-first initiative called 'Suhana Safar'. This Recurring Deposit backed auto loan scheme is to make car ownership more accessible to first-time buyers.[32] This addresses the problems of mobilising a lump sum down payment and committing to an EMI. This structured, RD-backed solution helps customers to build savings, earn interest, and practically assess their comfort with making regular payments before availing the auto loan.[32] The scheme offers a journey from disciplined savings to car ownership. This process involves opening the RD, monthly deposits, earning interest, down payment conversion and loan disbursement.[32] The 'Suhana Safar' scheme is available through all of the authorised Maruti Suzuki dealerships. The same can be availed for the models Alto K10, S-Presso, Celerio, and WagonR.[32]

Sustainability

In July 2026, AU SFB organised a mega tree plantation drive in Hyderabad, India. The same was done through the CSR arm of the bank, the AU foundation.[33] The same was aligned with the Ministry of Education's campaign, "Ek Ped Maa ke Naam 3.0". The primary objective of this is to restore ecological balance while instilling values of environmental accountability within the communities.[33]

Controversies

On 18 February 2026, AU Small Finance Bank was de-empanelled by the Government of Haryana along with IDFC First Bank.[34] The state questioned the bank over suspected unauthorised transactions of about ₹72 crore (US$7.5 million), including ₹47 crore (US$4.9 million) transferred in 14 transactions from a government account to a customer account.[35] The bank said the transactions were properly authorised and denied any wrongdoing.[36] However, the bank has initiated an internal review, placed certain employees off duty pending the process.[37]

Management

As of 2026, AU Small Finance Bank, Board of Director is as followed[38]

  • Mr. H. R. Khan (Part Time Chairman & Independent Director)
  • Mr. J M Prasad (Independent Director)
  • Mr. Kamlesh Shivji Vikamsey (Independent Director)
  • Ms. Malini Thadani (Independent Director)
  • Mr. Nandkumar Saravade (Independent Director)
  • Mr. N. S. Venkates (Independent Director)
  • Mr. Phani Shankar (Independent Director)
  • Mr. Satyajit Dwivedi (Independent Director)
  • Mr. Sanjay Agarwal (Founder,MD & CEO)
  • Mr. Vivek Tripathi (Executive Director)

See also

References

  1. ↑ Shaikh, Subhana (19 December 2024). "RBI Approves Re-Appointment Of HR Khan As Part-Time Chairman Of AU Small Finance Bank". NDTV Profit. Retrieved 22 July 2025.
  2. 1 2 "AU Small Finance Bank Ltd reports net profit of Rs. 424.63 crores in Q4 FY2023". EquityBulls. 25 April 2023. Archived from the original on 27 June 2023. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  3. ↑ "Company Factsheet". CRISIL. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  4. ↑ "ICRA Report". Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  5. ↑ "AU Bank Investor Presentation Q3FY19" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
  6. ↑ "AU Small Finance Bank – Fortune 500 List 2019 – Fortune India". Fortune India.
  7. ↑ AU Small Finance Bank Announces Q4'FY26/FY26 Financial Results (PDF). Jaipur, India: AU Small Finance Bank. p. 5.
  8. 1 2 3 "AU Bank Capital House Inaugurated". Archived from the original on 29 July 2026. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
  9. 1 2 Mudgill, Amit (28 June 2017). "AU Small Finance Bank IPO; here's what 8 brokerages say". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 15 March 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  10. 1 2 3 4 businessmodelcanvastemplate (15 March 2026). "What is Brief History of AU Small Finance Bank Company?". Business Model Canvas Research. Retrieved 28 July 2026. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  11. 1 2 https://www.au.bank.in/au-journey
  12. ↑ "Stock Share Price | Get Quote | BSE". Archived from the original on 6 October 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  13. ↑ Babla, Shraddha (11 July 2017). "After 51% Listing Gains, AU Small Finance Bank India's Most Expensive". Bloomberg Quint. Archived from the original on 16 March 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  14. ↑ Chatterjee, Paramita (7 December 2017). "PE Exits At An All-time High". BW Businessworld. Archived from the original on 28 March 2018. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  15. ↑ "High Stakes". Outlook Business. 2 March 2018. Archived from the original on 28 March 2018. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
  16. ↑ Srivats, K.R. (2 November 2017). "AU Small Finance gets scheduled commercial bank status". The Hindu Business Line. Archived from the original on 7 February 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  17. ↑ "Fincare SFB to merge with AU Small Finance Bank in all-share deal". www.business-standard.com. 29 October 2023. Archived from the original on 19 April 2024. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
  18. ↑ Ray, Atmadip (4 March 2024). "RBI approves AU Small Finance Bank acquisition of Fincare Small Finance Bank with effect from April 1". The Economic Times. Retrieved 22 July 2025.
  19. ↑ "AU Small Finance Bank gets RBI nod to become a universal bank". The Times of India. 7 August 2025. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  20. ↑ "Business Standard". 8 August 2025.
  21. ↑ "India's AU Small Finance Bank gets first universal banking licence in a decade". Reuters. 7 August 2025. Retrieved 8 August 2025.
  22. 1 2 "AU Small Finance Bank Launches Full Range of Savings Accounts for Every Customer Segment". The Wire. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
  23. ↑ www.ETBFSI.com. "AU Bank says AI-led automation reduces employee count for first time". ETBFSI.com. Retrieved 29 July 2026.
  24. ↑ https://www.au.bank.in/about-us
  25. ↑ "Sustainability initiatives - Staying true to our commitments" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2026.
  26. ↑ "Sustainability initiatives - Staying true to our commitments" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2026.
  27. ↑ "Sustainability initiatives - Staying true to our commitments" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2026.
  28. ↑ "Sustainability initiatives - Staying true to our commitments" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2026.
  29. ↑ "Sustainability initiatives - Staying true to our commitments" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2026.
  30. ↑ "Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report FY 2024-25" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2026.
  31. ↑ https://www.au.bank.in/pdf/reporting/BRSR-2025.pdf
  32. 1 2 3 4 Vishal (3 July 2026). "AU Small Finance Bank and Maruti Suzuki Launch 'Suhana Safar". English site. Retrieved 28 July 2026.
  33. 1 2 Vishal (17 July 2026). "AU Small Finance Bank Celebrates Van Mahotsav with Tree Plantation Drive in Hyderabad". English site. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
  34. ↑ Iyer, Archishma (23 February 2026). "De-empanelled by Haryana, AU Small Finance Bank opens probe, sends staff 'offduty'". Moneycontrol. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
  35. ↑ Fernandes, Jocelyn (23 February 2026). "AU Small Finance Bank de-empanelment: What we know about ₹47 crore funds transfer, timeline, internal review details | Company Business News". mint. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
  36. ↑ Sarkar, Subhojit (23 February 2026). "AU Small Finance Bank denies wrongdoing after Haryana govt de-empanels it over alleged fraud". Fortune India. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
  37. ↑ "AU Small Finance Bank begins internal probe after Haryana account fiasco". The Economic Times. 24 February 2026. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
  38. ↑ https://www.au.bank.in/about-us/board-of-directors

Further reading

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