KOLKATA: Chasing an entrepreneurial dream at the age of 69 may be rare, but when someone like K Cherian Varghese with experience of running three banks behind his belt goes for it, it does not look odd. Varghese has applied for a license to set up a small finance bank at his village in Kerala's Kottayam district.

"I would like to put all my experience to work. Initially, I will run it if I get the license," Varghese tells ET.

If he does not, he may begin helping people overcome stress as a counselor, many miles away from the world of finance! He said he is pursuing a professional course in psychological counseling at present.

As a banker, Varghese had exceptional credibility and experience. He headed two public sector banks - Corporation Bank and Union Bank of India; and the privately owned South Indian Bank on deputation in the middle of his career. He also served as technical advisor to PT Bank Rama in Indonesia. He started his career in Indian Bank in 1970 and rose from the ranks to become a general manager and then served as the executive director of Central Bank of India. In all, he had worked in six banks in a career spanning over 36 years.

His vast experience may not earn him a license automatically as Reserve Bank of India plans to focus on the unbanked localities initially as a criterion for selecting licensees. Kerala, for that matter, is not considered as a state, which lacks banking presence.

The veteran banker does not agree though. "Even today, local money lenders are thriving because the institutional system takes so much time to take decision and deliver loans to small people. A small finance bank can also make a difference in Kerala's interior villages."

He is confident of mobilising Rs 100 crore - the minimum to set up small finance bank --- from investors. "Indian institutions, NRIs, foreign investors - everyone is looking for opportunities to invest in India. If the license comes, capital would not be an issue."

After his retirement from Union Bank of India in 2006, Varghese was with the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction -- first as a member and then as chairman. He earned a doctorate in business policy and administration and management of credit risk in commercial banks in as recently as 2011.