The Kerala State Cooperative Bank (Kerala Bank) will soon roll out a low-interest loan scheme for enabling students to purchase laptops and tablets for their educational needs. Under the ‘Gen Z Tech Loan,’ open to undergraduate students and upwards, the bank will offer up to ₹1 lakh on 6.99% interest with a 30-month repayment period. The parent of the student applicant is required to be a guarantor.

Those availing the loan will also be offered a .5% reduction in the interest rate on educational loan, bank president P. Mohanan and other senior officials said at a press conference here on Friday. The scheme will be formally launched at Kakkanad on July 27. In the coming months, the Kerala Bank is also planning to conduct a meeting of expatriate Keralites in Kozhikode and an ‘IT meet’ in Kochi as part of placing added focus on these sectors, Mr. Mohanan said. The dates will be announced in due course, he said.

Growth in business

The bank’s total business has grown from ₹1,01,204.41 crore to ₹1,28,697 crore, placing it fifth among banks in Kerala is terms of the size of business. In the 2025-26 fiscal alone, the bank registered a growth of ₹7,700 crore. Loan disbursal in 2025-26 rose by 43% to ₹33,900 crore over the previous fiscal. Over the past two fiscals, loans worth ₹3,005 crore were issued to 51,300 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). Total deposits have risen to ₹75,457 crore and credit to ₹53,240 crore.

On whether the bank’s CPI(M)-led management would change with the Congress-led UDF government coming to power in Kerala, the bank management had no such qualms, Mr. Mohanan said. The bank has a cordial leadership with the government, he said. “The Kerala Bank has a legally and democratically elected board of directors. Neither does the bank traverse an isolated path in its growth. It has a system that moves together with the RBI, NABARD and the State government,” he said. Kerala Bank vice-president T.V. Rajesh and chief executive officer Jorty M. Chacko were among those present.

Published - July 24, 2026 08:29 pm IST