It is important that every adult member of the country should have a bank account and be included in mainstream banking. Yet, it is well known that a large segment of the population is financially excluded and do not have a bank account. However, the number of people served by the banks is very large. The BSR data published by RBI reveals that there were more than 66 crore deposit accounts and more than 11 crore credit accounts as on March 2009. Though it is evident that one person can have multiple accounts, it is seen that commercial banks cater to a large number of customers. This coupled with the fact that banks have near monopoly in offering saving facility to the people has made customer service an important aspect of banking. An efficient and effective customer service is of vital importance in modern day banking. The task becomes all the more challenging as the expectations of the customers have seen paradigm shifts in the recent past. Customer service calls for appropriate soft skills and also a good knowledge of the banking products and processes.

IIBF believes that education plays a crucial role in improving the skill sets of bankers. It is our belief that in addition to the financial education of customers, there is a need to equip the bank staff with appropriate knowledge on customer service. This course material on Customer Service and Banking Codes has been designed and developed by IIBF with active support from the Banking Codes And Standards Board of India (BCSBI). The courseware is expected to equip the practicing bankers to put on ground an efficient customer service.