Axis Bank launches new concept -- Everywhere Teller Machines

MUMBAI: After automated teller machines (ATMs), the country's third-largest lender Axis Bank today introduced a new concept wherein a swiping machine at a shop can be used by an account-holder to withdraw cash .

Christened as "Everywhere Teller Machines" (ETM), the facility has the potential to be used at the 1,80,000 points of sale of the bank spread across the country.

"Generally, card swiping is done to make a purchase at a shopkeeper's end. ETM is the reverse wherein a customer can withdraw money at the shop," a spokesperson for the bank said, adding the merchant will be paid a transaction fee.

The bank kick-started the concept in Andhra Pradesh's Vijayawada today, commencing with 120 points of sale, a release issued by the bank said.

It plans to scale it up to 500 merchants of sale in Andhra Pradesh by end-March this year and then roll it out in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Gujarat by end-FY 12, the release said.

Any person having a debit card of any bank can withdraw up to Rs 1,000 in a single transaction and will be charged Rs 10 per transaction, it added.

By-Economic Times

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Limitations of Indian banks' branching out abroad

During the early years it was not very easy for an Indian bank to open overseas branches, though the Reserve Bank of India was vested with the powers to allow them to open overseas branches. Policymakers took into account a number of factors and not all of which are purely commercial.

The process required RBI to consult a number of departments within its own organisation and other ministries through the nodal finance ministry.

Given the multiple considerations, RBI did not attempt to frame any definitive policy or guidelines in regard to the opening of branches or offices abroad by Indian banks till almost the onset of the 1980s, according to the notings in the third volume of the Reserve Bank’s history.

Many banks which attempted to open offices overseas did not get the regulator’s nod. In 1963–64, Punjab National Bank as well as Bank of India applied for opening offices in the United States but RBI did not grant them permission on the ground that requests could in turn come from US banks to open offices in India.

In 1964, Bank of India sought permission to open offices at Hamburg, Dusseldorf and Milan but these requests too were turned down on the ground of possible application of the reciprocity principle, which, at that time, was considered undesirable from the exchange control angle, i.e., having to permit remittance of profits by branches of foreign banks as well as from the point of view of its adverse effect on the expansion of business of Indian banks within India.

Three major elements influenced the Reserve Bank’s policy towards Indian banks opening offices abroad till the early 1970s. First, there was the question of foreign exchange for meeting the capital requirements and other expenses connected with the setting up of an overseas offices. Given the scarcity of foreign exchange reserves, RBI and the government were concerned about the foreign costs.

Second, there was the issue of business potential. This was related to the number of persons of Indian origin residing in the country in question. The perception was that the branch or office abroad would grow in size if it was supported by a large number of ethnic Indians.

Third, there was the principle of ‘reciprocity’

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Indian Bank hikes lending rate by 25 basis points

MUMBAI: State-owned lender Indian Bank today hiked lending rate for its existing customers by 25 basis points to 13.75 per cent in line with other banks.

The bank has revised its Benchmark Prime Lending Rate (BPLR) from existing rate of 13.5 per cent to 13.75 per cent, Indian Bank informed the Bombay Stock Exchange in a filing.

This will make all kind of existing loans, including housing and auto loans, expensive by at least 25 basis points.

Last week, the country's largest lender State Bank of India raised both lending and deposit rates on select maturities by 25 basis points in response to policy rate hike announced by the Reserve Bank on January 25.

Banks have been raising interest rates following a 0.25 percentage point hike in short-term lending (repo) and borrowing (reverse repo) rates each announced by the RBI in its third quarterly review of monetary policy last month.

Source: Economic Times

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HDFC Bank to ride growth opportunities in emerging "Bharat"

MUMBAI: Private sector HDFC Bank aims to ride the growth opportunities thrown up by the increasing affluence of "Bharat" (rural India) and expects to grow higher-than-industry over the next few years, a top bank official said.

The bank will also focus on organic growth, having completed the acquisition of CBoP a couple of years ago which has given it a strong footprint pan-India, he said.

"There is a tremendous opportunity in rural India and with the country's GDP poised to grow at 8 per cent-plus over the next few years, HDFC Bank is well-positioned to tap this opportunity for its rapid growth," the bank's Managing Director, Aditya Puri, told PTI here.

Describing rural India as "Bharat", Puri said that HDFC Bank is well-poised to exploit the growth opportunities here in terms of both products and branches.

"Bharat is growing rapidly -- there are agricultural reforms taking place, supply-chains are being developed and improved, per capita income is increasing and ancillary units are growing around manufacturing. All this makes HDFC Bank optimistic about its, and the country's financial sector's growth going forward," Puri said.

The bank constantly innovates and comes up with new offerings, he said, citing as an example its loans against gold jewellery facility.

"Now we give loans against gold jewellery which helps us tap business from small shop-keepers, small businesses and others in rural areas. This business is a good one in the interiors of the country," the HDFC Bank chief said.

HDFC Bank's strategy presently is to grow organically and "we have the ability to achieve our future growth targets organically," Puri said.

"There is no necessity for any acquisition now," he said in reply to a specific question on the issue.

The bank has a healthy footprint across the country thanks to its past acquisitions beginning with Times Bank in the late-1990s.

"The acquisition of Centurion Bank of Punjab (CBoP) gives us a footprint in the south as well as the north. We are, anyway, strong in the west," he said.

CBoP itself is an amalgamation of Lord Krishna Bank (south) and Bank of Punjab (north).

"Besides, we have laid a great deal of emphasis on our asset quality -- it has never been in distress and our NPA levels are very low," Puri said.

On fund-raising, he said it is not on the immediate horizon. "We have a capital adequacy ratio of over 16 per cent -- there is no need for us to raise funds immediately," Puri said.

By-Economic Times

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Govt to infuse Rs 907 cr in Dena Bank, Vijaya Bank

NEW DELHI: The government will infuse Rs 907 crore as equity capital into two PSU lenders — Dena Bank and Vijaya Bank — as part of recapitalisation package to shore up equity capital.

"The bank is in receipt of communication from the government conveying its decision to infuse Rs 539 crore by way of preferential allotment of equity...," Dena Bank said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Further, Vijaya Bank would get Rs 368 crore as capital from the government and a board meeting in this regard would be held on February 22.

Yesterday, UCO Bank and United Bank of India , had also said that they will get a capital infusion of Rs 1,248 crore from the government.

While UCO Bank would get an infusion of Rs 940 crore, Kolkata-based United Bank would get Rs 308 crore.

Beside, Allahabad Bank and Chennai-based Indian Overseas Bank will have their board meetings on February 18 and February 19, respectively to consider preferential allotment of equity shares to the government of India.

However, the quantum of capital infusions in these two banks are not known yet.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had announced capital infusion of Rs 15,000 crore into public sector banks during the current fiscal to ensure that these entities are able to attain a minimum 8 per cent Tier-I capital by March 31, 2011.

As part of recapitalisation, the government had infused Rs 6,211 crore into five banks. The banks, which had got capital support from the government in the first tranche included Union Bank of India , Bank of Maharashtra , IDBI Bank , UCO Bank and Central Bank India.

Besides, the government also approved additional capital infusion of Rs 6,000 crore in 10 public sector banks with an objective to raise its holding to a minimum 58 per cent in all state-run banks.

The proposed capital infusion is to enhance the lending capacity of the state-owned banks to meet the credit requirement of the economy in order to maintain and accelerate the economic growth momentum.

Source: Economic Times

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Royal Sundaram, Reliance arm to re-apply for merger

In light of the proposed merger and acquisition (M&A) guidelines for non-life insurance firms, general insurers Royal Sundaram and Reliance General, which had applied for a merger in July 2010 and were awaiting the regulator’s clearance, will have to file their application afresh.


Last week, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) laid down the draft guidelines for M&As among non-life insurance companies. It has invited comments by February 22, after which it will come up with the final guidelines. When the two companies applied, there were no guidelines for general insurers. As a result, they had to follow the norms applicable to life insurance companies.
“There were no merger-specific norms in the non-life space when the two companies applied. Since they have not got an approval from the regulator, they will have to re-file the application,” said a senior Irda official.


Apart from issues of taxation and valuation and the projected revenue of the merged entity, the draft guidelines put up by the regulator look into reinsurance strategies, protection and maintenance of reinsurance assets and key contracts and policyholders’ interests.


Both companies submitted the proposal for merger in July last year.


Royal Sundaram Alliance Managing Director Ajay Bimbhet said the company’s policy did not allow him to comment on the matter. Reliance General could not be reached for comment.


Reliance General has been scaling down business for some time. Even as the industry posted 24 per cent growth, Reliance General registered a loss of 22 per cent in gross written premium income during the nine months ended December.


According to the proposal, the UK-based RSA group was expected to have a 26 per cent stake in Reliance General, the fourth-largest private general insurer. As of now, Reliance Capital owns 100 per cent stake in the company. South-based Sundaram group, which holds 74 per cent in Royal Sundaram General Insurance, was likely to exit through this merger.


As of now, the deal has hit a roadblock. Sources close to the development say the companies have not reached an agreement regarding the valuation.




Source: Business standard

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IRDA cancels PNB Principal Insurance Broking licence

NEW DELHI: Insurance regulator IRDA today said it has cancelled the licence of PNB Principal Insurance Broking pursuant to their request for surrender.

"Pursuant to the request made by the Broker for surrender of Broker licence, the Authority hereby cancels the Direct Broker Licence granted to PNB Principal Insurance Broking," IRDA said in a statement.

This is pursuant to the restructuring of the insurance broking business of state-run Punjab National Bank , under which PNB bought out the stake of its two partner.

However, the other local partner Vijaya Bank would remain with the joint venture.

The Delhi-based public sector lender PNB will also buy out Principal and Berger Paints stake of 26 per cent and 25 per cent, respectively in a proposed insurance broking company, which also did not get off the ground.

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) said that the shareholders of PNB Principal Insurance Broking applied to surrender its license on November 24, 2010.

IRDA said PNB Principal Insurance Broking would continue to provide service to its clients for the next six months and would "make suitable arrangements with another licensed broker to service the contracts already concluded".

By-Economic Times

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Kotak Mahindra Bank ups term deposit rates by up to 0.25 per cent

MUMBAI: Private sector lender Kotak Mahindra Bank on Wednesday said it has hiked its term deposit rates by up to 0.25 per cent across select maturities.

The increase is with effect from today, the bank said in a statement issued Mumbai.

For deposits of a maturity period of one-year and above up to and inclusive of 389 days, the rate has been increased from 8.75 per cent to 9 per cent and for 390-days from 9 to 9.25 per cent, it said.

For a maturity of 700 days, the rate has been upped by 0.15 per cent from 9.25 per cent to 9.40 per cent.

For maturities of 391 days and above up to and inclusive of 699 days and 701 days and above, but less than two years, the rates have been increased from 8.75 per cent to 9 per cent each, it said.

For two years and above but less than three years and three years and above but less than five-years, the rates have again been increased by 0.25 per cent to 9.25 per cent each.

For five years and above up to and inclusive of 10 years, the rate has been upped from 9 to 9.25 per cent, the statement said.

Senior citizens enjoy an additional 0.50 per cent across maturities, the bank said.

Source: Economic Times

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Govt to infuse Rs 1,248 cr into UCO, United Bank of India

MUMBAI: The government has decided to infuse Rs 1,248 crore into two public sector banks UCO Bank and United Bank of India as part of recapitalization package to shore up equity capital.

The government has decided to infuse Rs 940 crore into the Tier I capital of the bank by way of preferential allotment of the equity, UCO Bank informed the Bombay Stock Exchange in a filing on Wednesday.

Besides, another Kolkata-based United Bank of India would get Rs 308 crore.

At the same time, Allahabad Bank and Chennai-based Indian Overseas Bank are having board meeting on February 18 and February 19 respectively to consider preferential allotment of equity shares to the Government of India.

However, quantum of capital infusion in these two banks are not yet known.

The notification in this regard was issued by the government on Tuesday.

Both the banks will have the board meeting on February 19 to consider the capital infusion.

The board will consider among other things the reclassification of the authorised capital of the bank, United Bank of India said in a separate filing.

It is to be noted that Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee announced capital infusion of Rs 15,000 crore into public sector banks during the current fiscal to ensure that these entities are able to attain a minimum 8 percent Tier-I capital by March 31, 2011.

As part of recapitalization, the government had infused Rs 6,211 crore into five banks. The banks, which had got capital support from the government in the first tranche included Union Bank of India , Bank of Maharashtra , IDBI Bank , UCO Bank and Central Bank India.

Besides, the government also approved additional capital infusion of Rs 6,000 crore in 10 public sector banks with an objective to raise its holding to a minimum 58 percent in all state-run banks.

The proposed capital infusion is to enhance the lending capacity of the state-owned banks to meet the credit requirement of the economy in order to maintain and accelerate the economic growth momentum.




Source: Economic Times

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SBI won't let you buy retail bonds online

MUMBAI: India’s largest bank, the State Bank of India , has decided not to offer to investors the option of subscribing to its retail bonds online like many other issuers, opting to sell these bonds only through its country-wide branch network.

The retail offering of bonds aimed at raising Rs 2,000 crore has been priced attractively with the bank offering 9.75% for 10 years and 9.95% for 15 years. In most bond offerings, investors have the option of applying online or through the branches. SBI officials said the bonds would be sold at 150 branches across the country.

The issue will open for subscription on February 21 and close on February 28. The bank has also decided to price the bonds differentially for various categories of investors. It will offer 9.30% for a 10-year bond for non-retail investors and 9.45% for 15 years. SBI has defined a nonretail investor as on who invests over Rs 5 lakh. For the 10-year bond, SBI has a call option at the end of the fifth year, and for the 15-year bond, the bank has a call option at the end of the 10th year.

The call option allows SBI to prepay the principal amount and its interest component at a pre-determined year, which is the end of the fifth year or the 10th year. SBI has sought the approval of the regulator for an umbrella bond issue of Rs 10,000 crore and the latest tranche of borrowing , aggregating Rs 2,000-crore bond issue, is part of this offering.

The bank is offering 9.5% for 1,000-and 555-days on its retail deposit. The SBI bond offering is expected to be oversubscribed due to its attractive pricing. Companies issuing infrastructure bonds are not allowed to offer a coupon rate higher than the 10-year benchmark gsec rates prevailing at the monthend preceding the issue date, going by government norms.

The yield on the 10-year is in the range of 8-8 .15%, which means that issuers cannot offer an interest rate of over 8.15%. SBI is not bound by any such restriction or cap on interest rates on its bond issue. Brokers marketing the issue say the main attraction of the bond, besides its pricing, is liquidity. “As these securities will be listed on the stock exchange, they can be immediately traded once allotted. Given the adequate safety of the issue , there will be a lot of demand. Investors should allocate a portion of their investments to this instrument ,” a broker said. This is the second retail bond issue of SBI.

In the last bond issue, SBI offered investors the choice of 9.25% on a 10-year bond and 9.5% on a 15-year bond. There was also a step-up option , whereby the bank would pay half a percentage point more if it did not exercise its call option at the end of 10 years.

Source: Economic Times

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RBI warns against fraudulent mails

MUMBAI: Unnamed text messages and emails inviting you to pay or invest a little money against promises of stunning returns should be ignored. These are attempts by fraudsters trying to take unsuspecting and gullible individuals for a ride. RBI has cautioned individuals to stay away from such offers . The central bank has said these offers are fictitious and are often in the form of lottery winnings or remittance of cheap funds in foreign currency from abroad by some foreign entities.

They are sent to individuals by way of email, SMS or even in the form of letters having letterheads that look like some public company. At times there are offers where individuals are offered huge sums of money from abroad and as a condition individuals are asked to deposit a small amount (in comparison to what they would receive ) as transaction fee or processing fee, or tax clearance charges in a certain bank account. According to a recent release issued by the central bank “Often gullible genuine accountholders are persuaded by the fraudsters to lend their accounts for such fraudulent activities on the promise of receiving some commission.

Once the initial amount is deposited , demands for more money follow with more official sounding reasons. After accumulating a sizeable amount in these accounts , fraudsters withdraw or transfer the money abroad and vanish, leaving the victims in a lurch. Many residents have already become victims and have lost huge sums of money by falling for such fictitious offers.” RBI has reiterated that such offers are fraudulent and advised the public to register a complaint with the local police or cyber crime authorities on receiving such offers or if they become a victim of any such fraud.

Such fake schemes have multiplied over the years with Internet penetration. Besides, a liberalised currency regime allows an Indian resident to remit a substantial amount — as a high as $200000 a year — for investments abroad. However, regulations ban deployment of funds in lottery schemes, gambling and even future and derivative transactions that have no underlier.

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SBI to open 50 more branches in Gujarat by fiscal-end

AHMEDABAD: The nation's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) on Wednesday said it will open 50 more branches in Gujarat by this fiscal-end.

"We shall be adding 50 more branches by this fiscal- end to the existing network of 1,150 branches in Gujarat," SBI Gujarat Circle Chief General Manager P Nanda Kumaran told reporters here.

Moving towards paperless banking culture, the state- run lender has proposed to open a separate 24X7 operational Self Service branch.

"We will open a Self Service branch in Ahmedabad before this fiscal-end in one of the non-banked areas of the city, which shall be followed with another such branch in Vadodara," Kumaran said.

The concept of Self Service branch promotes paperless banking culture where automated machines offer routine services like cash deposit, withdrawal, remittances, passbook updates and statements.

The bank has proposed to add 225 ATMs in Gujarat to its existing network of 1,300 machines. It will also install high-end ATMs which provide direct cash deposit facility.

"In order to get rid of disputes arising from envelope -based ATM cash deposits, the bank has decided to introduce direct cash deposit ATMs at seven locations in five major cities of Gujarat," Kumaran said.

The bank has inked an MoU with Gujarat Livelihood Promotion Company for lending Rs 5,000 crore over the next 3 to 5 years with a view to link SHGs, producer groups and the poor with banking channel, he said.

Source: economictimes

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SBI Mutual floats capital protection fund

As investors turn risk averse due to volatile markets, SBI Mutual Fund is attempting to attract them with a capital protection fund, even though the category has historically yielded poor returns.


SBI Capital Protection Oriented Fund Series II is a five-year close-ended scheme, aimed at protecting capital on maturity through investments in equity, debt and money market instruments. The fund will be open for subscription between February 18 and March 11.


To reduce interest rate risk, the fund will invest in central government schemes or debt issued by AAA-rated companies, Navneet Munot, chief investment officer, SBI Mutual Fund, said.


Capital protection funds invest in the safest securities, and, hence, give poor returns. Most funds in this category have returned 4-5% return over three years. SBI Capital Protection Oriented Fund Series I returned just about 3.5% over three years, when the five-year government bond yields were around 7.5%.


“Investors can easily protect capital by investing a part of their income (75-80%) in FDs or MIPs and the rest in the equity market,” says Gaurav Mashruwala, a Mumbai-based independent financial advisor. “This will provide them similar payoffs at lower fund management charge.”


Source: EconomicTimes

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SBI to offer 15-year retail bonds at 9.95%

MUMBAI: State Bank of India will sell bonds to retail investors offering returns of 9.75% and 9.95% on 10- and 15-year bonds, respectively.

In a letter to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the bank said its central board has approved raising funds through the issue of subordinated debt (lower tier II bonds). It has approved selling bonds worth Rs 1,000 crore, with an option to retain oversubscription of up to Rs 1,000 crore. In case of retail demand, SBI can retain the oversubscription beyond Rs 2,000 crore up to Rs 10,000 crore.

This time around the bank is offering different rates for retail and non-retail investors. Non-retail investors, who include institutions and high net-worth individuals who invest in bulk, will receive 9.3% for 10 years and 9.45% for 15-year investments. The bank also has an option to pre-pay investors in the 10-year bonds after 5 years and after 10 years for 15-year bondholders.

Senior officials of the bank said that details regarding the opening of the issue would be announced on Tuesday. Although these investments are long-term in nature, investors are assured liquidity through the listing of these bonds.

Investment bankers who are distributing the issue say earlier experience suggests that SBI is bound to receive a huge oversubscription on the first day itself. "There are many banks that are offering 9.5% and above on fixed deposits. But these investments typically are for one-two years and interest rates are widely expected to come down in the long-term," said an investment banker.

SBI`s earlier retail bond issue, which offered a much lower return, was a huge success with the bonds being sold out on the first day. Successful investors got an opportunity to make equity-like gains as the bonds were listed at a 5% premium on listing. While the returns on the bonds are even better, the listing position would depend on the extent of unsatisfied demand in the public issue. Prices of SBI`s earlier bonds fell marginally on Monday, but the securities continue to trade at a significant premium over the issue price.

Although the size of the issue is minuscule compared to the bank`s balance sheet, the issue is part of an ongoing programme to develop a market for long-term resources. The bank presently funds all its long-term loans, which include home loans and loans to the infrastructure sector, through core savings deposits and medium-term deposits. The long-term bonds will enable the bank to match some of its long-term fixed liabilities.

 

By-Economic Times

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Bank of Maharashtra, State Bank of Mysore raise lending rates by 25 bps

MUMBAI: Two state-owned lender-- Bank of Maharashtra and State Bank of Mysore hiked lending rate by 25 basis points in line with other lenders.

Bank of Maharashtra raised the Benchmark Prime Lending Rate (BPLR) by 25 basis points to 13.75 per cent effective yesterday, the bank informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.

This will make all kind of existing loans, including housing and auto loan expensive by atleast 25 basis points.

Besides, State Bank of Mysore has increased its Base Rate or the minimum lending by 25 basis points from 8.5 per cent to 8.75 per cent. The new rate would be effective from February 14.

Country's largest lender State Bank of India raised both lending and deposit rates on select maturities by 25 basis points in response to policy rate hike announced by Reserve Bank on January 25.

Banks have been raising interest rates following a 0.25 percentage point hike in short-term lending (repo) and borrowing (reverse repo) rates announced by the Reserve Bank in its third quarterly review of monetary policy last month.

More than a dozen banks, including Punjab National Bank , Bank of Baroda , Union Bank of India and Indian Overseas Bank has already revised interest rates since January.

By-Economic Times

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Indian Bank ties up with TVS for vehicle finance

CHENNAI: Public sector lender Indian Bank today said it has entered into an agreement with TVS Motor Company for financing the company's vehicles.

"The MoU will help to bring three wheeler drivers into structured banking and enhance Bank's collateral free lending," Indian Bank Chairman T M Bhasin told reporters here.

Through this tie-up with TVS Motor Company, the Bank's loan book by March 2011 would increase to Rs 10 crore and its expected to be touch Rs 75 crore during the next financial year.

"Besides Indian Bank we are having tie-up with other public sector undertaking bank .. But this will highly benefit the borrower as they (Indian Bank) offers them to pay about 15 per cent on the on-road price of the vehicle which is comparatively lower.." TVS Motor Company Vice-President (Sales and Service) Three Wheeler division K Srinivasan said.

Currently, the service available in all the 1,828 branches all over India of these 776 branches are in Tamil Nadu. TVS Motor Company also has about 22 dealers with 300 service station in the State, he added.

By-Economic Times

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Bank trio thrive on low-cost deposits

Calcutta/Mumbai, Jan. 28: Armed with a new base rate system for lending and a significant improvement in low-cost deposits, Allahabad Bank, UCO Bank and Bank of Baroda today reported a hefty growth in their net interest income, resulting in an over 20 per cent growth in net profit for the quarter ended December 2010.

While Allahabad Bank posted a 20.39 per cent jump in net profit for the third quarter of the current financial year at Rs 415 crore, Uco Bank’s net rose 22.35 per cent year-on-year to Rs 301 crore. Bank of Baroda’s net profit rose 28.4 per cent to Rs 1,068.88 crore.

Allahabad Bank’s net interest income (NII) increased 55.67 per cent to Rs 1,051.63 crore, while that of Uco Bank surged 69.10 per cent to Rs 1,062 crore. NII is interest earned minus interest paid.

“In the third quarter, we re-priced all our assets (read, advances) while on the resources side we moved out of bulk deposits and increased the share of low-cost savings and current bank account deposits. This way we have been able to contain our cost of funds and increase the yield on advances,” said J.P. Dua, chairman of Allahabad Bank.

UCO Bank chairman Arun Kaul said instead of depending on bulk deposits, the bank relied more on raising money through certificate of deposits from institutional investors and at the same time increased the share of savings bank account deposits.

On the lending side, both the banks got rid of low-yielding loans following the implementation of the base rate system from September 2010.

BoB’s third-quarter net profit rose to Rs 1,068.88 crore from Rs 832.49 crore last year. A strong demand for loans coupled with a good share of low-cost current and savings account deposits was reflected in the bank’s NII, which rose 43.2 per cent to Rs 2,292.26 crore from Rs 1,601.23 crore last year.

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Robbers loot cash from man in Sivasagar

ORHAT: Unidentified miscreants snatched a handbag from a clerk of an educational institution from the Sonari branch of UCO bank in Sivasagar district on Monday. The bag contained Rs 1.14 lakh. Police have launched an investigation.

Officer-in-charge (Sonari) Durlav Das said, "We have received a complaint from Hamidur Ahmed of the Bampathar area that someone snatched his bag at UCO Bank when he had kept it on a table in the staff room inside the office. He is a clerk of Bampathar Bengenabari Higher Secondary school. The amount he withdrew was the salary of the staff-members of the school."

He also said it was mysterious how the bag was lost from inside the bank. "We have registered a case and our investigation is on. A team of investigators went to the bank. But nothing has been found so far," he added.

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