Dena, UCO Banks to act as registrars for UID project

State owned lenders Dena Bank and UCO Bank have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to act as registrars for the ‘Aadhaar’ biometric smartcard project. Both banks will act as registrars for providing Unique Identification Numbers under the UID initiative. The banks will provide UID numbers to existing as well as future customers by collecting biometric and demographic details as per the norms established by the UIDAI, Dena Bank said in a statement. This provision will enable real-time online authentication of identities for satisfying the know your customer (KYC) norms required for opening of ‘no frills’ savings accounts by sections...

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India''s second financial hub to come up in WB

India''s second financial hub will come up in West Bengal after Mumbai''s Bandra-Kurla complex to house a cluster of banks, insurance companies and other financial intermediaries.Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, while laying the foundation stone of the hub at Jyoti Basu Nagar near the metropolis here today, said "this will play a catalytic role in the development of the eastern and Northeastern region."Keeping in tune with the Centre''s Look East policy aimed at boosting trade and ties with the eastern and far eastern nations, Mukherjee said "the proposed hub will provide the necessary infrastructure for facilitating trade with these nations."Mukherjee said "with India''s increasing...

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Have recognised Zoom Developers a/c as NPA: UCO Bank

Public sector bank, UCO Bank, has raised its base rate from 8% to 8.5%. The bank is looking at reviewing its plan to enter the equity market with an FPO. It had planned to sell 6 crore shares to raise Rs 400-500 crore and had received government clearance for sale of equity in the middle of 2009.The bank had received Rs 373 crore from the government in July for recapitalisation. It had sought a further Rs 1300 crore from the government. The government’s stake in UCO Bank currently stands at 63.59%.The bank is also said to have a large exposure along with 26 other banks through its lending to Zoom Developers, in the alleged Rs 2700 crore fraud, which is being spoken of as the biggest banking...

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UCO BANK SELECTS XCHANGING TO IMPLEMENT DISASTER RECOVERY SOLUTION

UCO BANK SELECTS XCHANGING TO IMPLEMENT DISASTER RECOVERY SOLUTIONTo become the first Indian bank to implement EastNets' empowerment productMUMBAI, 1 June 2010 - Xchanging /quotes/comstock/23s!e:xch (UK:XCH 178.90, -1.80, -0.10%) , a large, fast growing global business processor, announced today that it has extended its relationship with UCO Bank, a leading Indian bank, to implement mission critical disaster recovery solution for its most business critical financial telecommunication infrastructure.Xchanging will enable UCO Bank to seamlessly integrate near real-time databases, payments, and transactions over its SWIFT payment gateway with the bank's existing disaster recovery infrastructure....

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RBI tries its hand at contract style recruitment

For long now, a government job has meant official accommodation, easy working hours and a wholesome retirement kitty, among a host of benefits. However, this is changing, as state-run organisations increasingly tilt towards contract basis employment, where the benefits are limited to bare essentials such as medical benefits and salary.So it is at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which is currently looking for executive interns on a three-year contract.The search is for 200 executive interns, way more than the number of direct recruit probationary officers (POs) the central bank takes in every year. The selected candidates would neither be entitled to company accommodation, pension, provident...

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Public sector banks seen besting private sector peers in RoE

Public sector banks (PSBs) have fared better than their private sector counterparts in terms of return on equity (RoE) in the last two financial years, breaking with the trend seen over at least six previous years, says a report by Avendus Equity Research.The trend may be here to stay, Chandana Jha, banking analyst, Avendus Equity Research, suggests in the report, released last week.RoE measures a bank’s profitability by revealing how much profit it has generated with the money shareholders have invested.India’s second-largest lender, ICICI Bank, had the lowest average RoE of 9.2% in the March 2008-March 2010 period, while Punjab National Bank (PNB) had the highest, at 24%.The figures are likely...

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RBI against securitisation for profit booking

India's central bank Wednesday proposed higher capital requirements and capping the foreign holding below 50% in new private-sector banks as it considers issuing fresh banking licenses."A larger number of banks would foster greater competition, and thereby reduce costs, and improve the quality of service," the Reserve Bank of India said in a discussion paper.India's banking sector is dominated by 27 state-run banks, and the RBI has historically been wary of granting licenses to the private sector due to apprehensions it may become difficult to control any rise in bad loans. The last domestic banking license was allotted to Yes Bank Ltd. in May 2004. India now has 22 private-sector banks.The...

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45-yr-old woman foils robbery

A 45-year-old women, Rekha Jais, a resident of Mohade Layout in Wadi, foiled a robbery and helped nab two accused. Police said the woman had withdrawn cash Rs 25,000 from UCO Bank. She had kept the cash in her handkerchief. While she was walking towards her house, two miscreants came on a bike and tired to snatch the handkerchief. However, she screamed and held on to the pillion rider's hand. Though the accused managed to free his hand, passers-by chased and nabbed them. Wadi police arrested Dhananjay Malode and Rashid Shaikh. Bag containing ornaments stolen: A bag containing 6 tola (60gm) gold valuables was stolen by an unidentified miscreant from Midas Heights, a complex of private hospitals,...

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RBI set to introduce credit default swaps

The Reserve bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday proposed to introduce credit default swaps, or CDS, in Indian markets, enabling firms to hedge against any possible default by a bond issuer.CDS is a derivative used to offset risks in debt markets. It allows creditors to insure themselves against the possibility that a borrower might default.The draft guidelines were put up on RBI’s website late Wednesday. It did not say when the instrument would come in play but invited public comments to the report—titled “Draft Report of the Internal Group on Introduction of Credit Default Swaps for Corporate Bonds”—till 4 October.This is the third time RBI has come out with a draft report on CDS. The first was...

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Dhanalakshmi Bank in Talks With Partners to Set Up Asset Management Unit

Dhanalakshmi Bank Ltd., an Indian lender, is in talks with potential partners to set up an asset management unit as it expands its fee-based income business.The bank, based in the southern state of Kerala, will own 20 percent of the money manager, Managing Director Amitabh Chaturvedi said in an interview in Mumbai today. The dominant partner will control 51 percent, while a third company will own 29 percent, Chaturvedi said without identifying the companies. Dhanalakshmi expects to start the venture by December, he said.“Our preferred route will be to hold major management control with a minority stake and discussions are in process,” Chaturvedi said. “The optimism is coming from the opportunities...

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Banks not following RBI norms for opening no-frill accounts: FM

Government today admitted that certain banks were not following guidelines on opening no frill, zero balance accounts in rural areas and said efforts were being made to make banking facilities available to remotest part of the country through various means. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in Lok Sabha that certain banks might not be observing guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India in opening no-frill, zero balance accounts in rural areas. Mukherjee said he has asked banks to listen to the political leadership and the state governments in addressing the grievances of the people. He was answering a supplementary question by Arjun Singh Meghwal (BJP) on complaints that banks were denying...

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Six mths on, headless PSBs still wait for appointment

Many public sector banks are currently lying headless as the government is yet to issue appointment letters even though selection process is completed for these posts. Banks like Canara Bank, Corporation Bank, UCO Bank and Punjab Sindh Bank are waiting for the new CMDs to join as the government is yet to issue appointment letters.The selection procedure for the bank chiefs was brought under scanner by a few members of the parliament earlier this year. Questions were raised regarding transparency of the selection process and allegations were filed by a few MPs regarding ad hoc selection of the bank chiefs.According to sources, although the process to select chiefs of 10 PSBs had started six months...

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ICICI, HDFC Bank flouted recovery norms: FM

The government today said at least two private banks — ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank — had repeatedly violated the guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on engagement of recovery agents.In response to a question in the Lok Sabha, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said 120 complaints had been received by the banking ombudsman regarding violation of the norms during 2009-10.He, however, did not say what action was being contemplated by the government and only listed the action initiated by RBI, the Banking Codes and Standards Board of India and the Banking Ombudsman Scheme, which was amended in February 2009. The amendments allowed the ombudsman to award a compensation of up to Rs 1 lakh in...

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RBI refuses deposit, Rs 93 cr left stranded

A van carrying Rs 92 crore in cash of three banks of Alwar district of Rajasthan was tonight parked outside the Reserve Bank of India office in Jaipur after the central bank refused to accept the deposit which did not arrive on time.The van carrying the wads of currency notes stacked in 90 boxes was left stranded in front of RBI office gate and is surrounded by armed policemen.The RBI declined to accept the money brought from State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank and Grameen Bank branches in Alwar as the vehicle could not reach the RBI office by the deadline of 5 pm, police said.RBI officers have been informed about the van being stranded in front of the RBI office but no officer of the...

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Five-year lock-in for infrastructure bonds

The Centre has cleared infrastructure bonds issued by certain government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI)-approved entities.They will be eligible for tax deduction under Section 80CCF up to a maximum Rs 20,000.The bonds will be issued by Life Insurance Corporation of India, Industrial Finance Corporation of India, Infrastructure Development Finance Company and non-banking finance companies classified as infrastructure finance companies by the RBI.This includes L&T Infrastructure Finance, which got RBI approval earlier this week.The proposal of creating funds to meet the long-term needs of infrastructure development was mooted in the Budget 2011.Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee had said in...

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RBI pulls up banks on credit card transparency issue

The Reserve Bank of India has come down on banks and financial institutions for the lack of transparency in credit card operations, especially in charging interest rates and levying other fees on customers.Despite the issue of comprehensive instructions to banks, the RBI and the Banking Ombudsmen continue to receive numerous complaints from credit card holders regarding the credit card operations of the banks, especially with regard to excessive finance charges, issuance of unsolicited credit cards, unsolicited insurance policies and recovery of premium charges, charging of annual fee in spite of being offered as ‘free’ cards, issuance of loans over phone, disputes over wrong billing, settlement...

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Growth in PSB staff costs higher than private peers

Public sector banks' (PSBs) growth in staff cost vis-a-vis private banks was significantly higher during 2009-10. However, the staff cost spent declined for both private and public sector banks during 2009-10 compared with the previous fiscal.According to a study on 27 PSBs and 18 private banks, growth in staff cost in the case of PSBs marginally dipped to 18.7% in 2009-10 from 21.6% a year-ago, whereas the same for private banks significantly decreased to 10.5% from 25.8%.Total staff cost of the PSBs increased to Rs 41,048 crore during 2009-10 from Rs 28,432 crore in 2007-08 and Rs 34,577 crore in 2008-09. Among the PSBs, Central Bank of India registered highest increase in growth of staff...

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Do Not fall Prey to Fictitious Offers of Funds Transfer: RBI Advisory

The Reserve Bank advised banks on May 26, 2010, to exercise due cautionand to be extra vigilant concerning the fictitious offers whereby bankaccounts are opened and/or transactions made in the accounts forreceiving payments styled as transaction charges, etc, towards the so-called transfer of prize money/award money, etc. The Reserve Bank hasclarified that any person resident in India collecting andeffecting/remitting such payments directly /indirectly outside India isliable to be proceeded against with, for contravention of the ForeignExchange Management Act, 1999 besides being liable for violation ofregulations relating to Know Your Customer (KYC) norms/Anti MoneyLaundering (AML) standards.The...

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Five held for cheating banks

Central Crime Branch (CCB) sleuths unearthed a Rs 20-crore cheating case, causing heavy losses to leading banks, by arresting five persons. Anup Justin (37) of Anandnagar, L Sridhar (42) of Yelahanka New Town, Srinath (33) of Nagarbhavi, Prakash (51) of Basaveshwarnagar and Sudhakar (44) of Kurubarahalli are the arrested.The suspects prepared fake documents pertaining to a site, availed loan, produced a Kannada film, Aakasha Gange and absconded after they realised they ran into rough weather, the police said.They prepared fake documents during 2006-07 showing Yashodhamma sold a BDA site at BSK third stage measuring 63X40 to them. They also got it registered in their names at Basavanagudi sub-registrar...

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Business correspondents to provide door step banking in Himachal

With the objective of providing banking facilities at the doorstep, banks in Himachal have identified larger villages where the banking facilities available are at quiet a distance and directions have been issued to appoint business correspondents for meeting the daily banking needs of the residents.Bankers who met for a special meet of the State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC) here, also reviewed the progress made under the Annual Credit Plan (2010-11) during the first quarter ending June, 2010.Convener of the SLBC, Ripan Murgai, general manager UCO bank that with the object of providing banking at the doorstep, 48 villages with a population of over 2000 have been identified in 8 districts where...

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IIFCL to guarantee infra cos' bond issues under new offering

State-run India Infrastructure Finance Company (IIFCL) has said it will soon launch, in association with the ADB, a product to improve credit worthiness of infrastructure firms that seek to raise money through long-term bonds. "We are expecting government approval for launching a credit enhancement product within the next 10 days," IIFCL Chairman and Managing Director S K Goel said he...

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VRL Logistics Files DRHP With SEBI

Hubli-based VRL Logistics Ltd has filed DRHP to raise fund through IPO and plans to issue 2.35 Cr shares which constitutes 25% of the fully diluted post-issue paid-up share capital.The company will utilise the IPO proceeds to fund new vehicle acquisitions (Rs.140 Cr), to retire debt to UCO Bank and Union Bank of India (to both Rs.110 Cr) and for other general corporate purposes.SBI Capital markets is the sole book running lead manager to the issue.Transaction Reference: S...

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10 times you should NOT use your credit card

It's a world of plastic money. With the swipe of a card, you could shop and dine at the best places or even plan a holiday. But plastic money does not always bring cheer to all. Spenders are often burdened with high bills and accumulated charges.Here InvestmentYogi explains 10 occasions when credit card usage should be restricted, to avoid the vicious circle of debt.1. Cash advance for emergenciesDo not use your credit card for cash advances. It sure is convenient to withdraw that readily available cash through your credit card from an ATM or bank, but be aware; the interest charged is around 2.85 per cent per month. With interest being compounded monthly, the effective annual interest rate...

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