Citibank, known for its innovations in electronic banking, has come up with two new schemes, Citibank Suvidha and CitiAlert, both of which aim at making banking simpler for its individual clients.

Launched in October, both the schemes have been received well. CitiAlert, which is being rolled out globally, is the first such banking service to be offered in India and comes close on the heels of a recent successful international debut in Singapore. India is only the second country in the Citigroup world to have this service, ahead even of Europe and the US.

CitiAlert is an Internet and mobile phone based alert service designed to provide customers with information whenever, however and wherever they want it. It is a completely personalised service and provides customers with the latest information regarding their accounts. Customers can choose from a range of account-specific notifications about which they want to be informed, including past-due-date reminders, overdrafts and credit limits.

One obvious benefit CitiAlert holds out to customers is that it enables them to take informed decisions through relevant money alerts, anywhere in India, at the desired frequency (daily, weekly or monthly). All that the individual needs to do is register himself through the Net or through CitiPhone. The registration form is available at all ATM Centres and Citibank branches across India.

When an alert is triggered, a text message is sent to the customer's mobile phone or via e-mail. Says Mr Nanoo G Pamnani, CEO & global consumer head-India, Citibank NA, "CitiAlert is the only service of its kind in India that actually reaches out to the customer to update him on his finances, no matter where he is in the country, without any effort on his part."

Citibank Suvidha, the bank's other innovative service, is a 24-hour savings bank account for salaried individuals. What is unique to this service is its minimum balance requirement of only Rs 1,000. The scheme, which was launched in Bangalore in 1998 and in Mumbai in 1999, has finally come to Delhi and will soon be expanded to other parts of the country. Says business manager Deepak Chandnani, New Millennium Bank, a division of Citibank, "Citibank Suvidha has enabled us to address the complex needs of our metro customers."

Citibank customers in Delhi are slated to receive "a host of unmatched services free" through Citibank Suvidha. This includes a personalised cheque book, a free ATM card that doubles up as a credit card without any annual fee charge and access to Citibank's CitiPhone Banking with a dedicated number for Suvidha and CitiDirect Internet Banking. The debit card can also be used in over 100 countries across 50,000 ATMs for shopping at five million outlets, for a one-time international activation fee of Rs 250.

Another special feature of Citibank Suvidha, point out CitiBank officials, is the special discounts and incentives across varied products and services that customers can avail of on an ongoing basis. This year, for debit card holders, for example, there are discounts of 10 per cent at Shoppers' Stop and Music World and 25 per cent at all outlets of Pizza Corner.

Says Mr Pamnani, "Suvidha particularly is a part of our embedded bank strategy to broadbase our offerings in India, especially towards the salaried segment."