Indian Overseas Bank was founded in 1937 by Thiru M. Ct. M. Chidambaram Chettyar with a specific mission baked into its name — to encourage overseas banking and foreign exchange operations for India, well before independence. Nearly nine decades later, it’s grown into a major public sector bank with over 3,000 domestic branches, still carrying that international-trade-oriented DNA alongside standard retail and corporate banking.
Daily Branch Hours
Most sources converge on 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM for standard branch hours, though a handful of older sources describe opening times as early as 9:00–9:30 AM with a 3:30–4:00 PM close, and at least one source cites branch hours running as late as 5:00 PM.
| Day | Branch Hours |
| Monday–Friday | 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM |
| Saturday | 1st, 3rd, 5th Saturday (most sources) — see note below |
| 2nd & 4th Saturday | Closed |
| Sunday | Closed |
| National/State Bank Holidays | Closed |
Worth flagging directly: while most sources describe the standard RBI-mandated 1st, 3rd, and 5th Saturday working pattern, at least one source specifically states IOB’s working days are “Monday to Friday and 1st & 3rd Saturday” — omitting the 5th Saturday entirely. This doesn’t match the broader body of sourcing or standard industry practice, so it’s likely an error or an overly narrow simplification rather than a genuine IOB-specific policy, but it’s worth confirming with your branch if you’re planning a 5th-Saturday visit specifically.
Cash Counter Cutoff
No sharply distinct, bank-published cash-specific cutoff figure was found for IOB beyond the general branch hours. Following the pattern typical across public sector banks in this series, cash counters most likely wind down in the 20 to 30 minutes before the branch’s general closing time. Treat 3:30 PM to 3:45 PM as a reasonable arrival target for cash-related work.
RTGS and NEFT: Genuinely Scattered Figures
This is one of the more inconsistent data sets in the entire series, worth laying out plainly:
- NEFT through the branch — reasonably consistently reported as 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM, processed in hourly batches, excluding the 2nd and 4th Saturdays, Sundays, and bank holidays
- NEFT (online) — should follow the standard 24×7 rule applied industry-wide
- RTGS through the branch — reported figures genuinely disagree: one source cites 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, another cites 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM, and a third states 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM while also claiming the service runs “24 hours a day” — an internally contradictory description that likely conflates the branch counter window with the separate online RTGS availability
- RTGS (online) — should be genuinely 24×7, per the standard RBI framework, separate from whatever branch-counter window applies
Given how much these figures diverge, anyone planning a same-day, branch-based RTGS transfer at IOB should confirm the exact cutoff directly with their branch rather than relying on any single published figure — this is one of the least settled details across the banks covered in this series.
Lunch: Reported Windows Also Vary
Lunch timing reporting is similarly inconsistent: some sources cite a short 1:00 PM to 1:30 PM window, others describe 1:30 PM to 2:00 PM, and still others extend it to 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM. What stays consistent across every source, though, is that staff rotate through breaks rather than closing the branch — IOB explicitly does not pause operations for lunch, so counters remain functional throughout, whichever specific window applies at your branch.
Best Time to Visit
Morning remains the safest recommendation across sources — arriving shortly after opening, within the first 60 to 90 minutes, avoids both the lunch rotation (whichever window it turns out to be) and any afternoon slowdown. Given the genuine uncertainty around IOB’s exact closing time and RTGS cutoffs, building in extra margin rather than cutting it close is more important here than at banks with cleaner, more consistent published figures.
Working Saturdays
The standard RBI alternate-Saturday policy applies: branches operate on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Saturdays and close on the 2nd and 4th, per the majority of sourcing — though, as noted above, one source describes a narrower 1st-and-3rd-only pattern that doesn’t match the broader consensus.
Beyond Branch Hours
- IOB Mobile Banking and Net Banking — 24×7 for NEFT, RTGS, bill payments, and account management; the bank’s own advisory specifically encourages customers to use mobile banking over branch visits where possible
- UPI, IMPS, and ATMs — available round the clock, including holidays
- Locker access — restricted to standard branch working hours, with no separate locker-specific timing
FAQs
Q1. What are Indian Overseas Bank’s standard branch hours?
Most sources agree on 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, though older sourcing shows some variation — confirming with your specific branch is worthwhile.
Q2. Does Indian Overseas Bank close for lunch?
No. Staff rotate through breaks — reported windows range from 1:00–1:30 PM to as late as 1:30–2:30 PM — while the branch stays functional throughout.
Q3. What’s the real cutoff for a branch-based RTGS transfer?
Sources genuinely disagree, ranging from 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM. Confirming with your branch directly is the safer approach for a same-day transfer.
Q4. Is Indian Overseas Bank open on all working Saturdays?
Most sourcing confirms the standard 1st, 3rd, and 5th Saturday pattern, though one source describes only the 1st and 3rd — worth checking with your branch before a 5th-Saturday visit.
Q5. How old is Indian Overseas Bank?
It was founded in 1937, specifically to support overseas banking and foreign exchange operations for India, and has since grown into a major public sector bank with a nationwide branch network.
