HDFC Bank elevates seven senior executives in bid to retain talent

HDFC Bank has elevated 7 senior executives to group heads of various businesses as it tries to groom talent and protect them from being poached by emerging rivals such as IDFC Bank and other payment banks.India's second largest private sector bank has elevated Parag Rao, who heads the bank's card payments and merchant acquiring business, Nitin Chugh who is in charge of the bank's Digital Banking services, Nirav Shah who handles the SME portfolio, and Ravi Narayanan who helms the bank's branch banking vertical.Others who have been promoted are...

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IDRBT to develop digital banking framework

The Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT) has announced plans to launch a digital banking framework within the next few months, aimed at incorporating new channels of payments.A.S. Ramasastri, Director of IDRBT, told BusinessLine, “The framework/ platform being developed with inputs from banking sector players, technology firms, and IDRBT research teams, is also aimed at meeting emerging requirements in the e-commerce sector.”Recent advances in Big Data and its analytics has thrown up immense possibilities in...

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Dena Bank gets board approval to dilute government stake

Public sector lender Dena Bank has got board approval for dilution of government holding to up to 52 per cent and raise capital up to Rs 2,500 crore from various bonds."To raise equity capital of the Bank by diluting GOI holding up to 52 per cent, on obtaining necessary approval government," the bank said in a BSE filing.Government shareholding in the bank was 65 per cent at the end of September 30.Last year, the government allowed public sector banks to to bring down its stake to 52 per cent so as to meet capital requirement.As per law, government...

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SBT launches ‘affordable housing loan’ scheme

State Bank of Travancore (SBT) has launched a ‘Housing for All (Urban): Mission 2022’ to provide affordable housing to families belonging to the economically weaker sections/low-income groups in the urban centres.The scheme upholds the spirit of the ‘Swachh Bharath Mission’ by insisting on a toilet for every house that is built, a spokesman for the bank said here.The loan can be accessed in all statutory towns of India as per the Census of 2011, the spokesman added.As part of the scheme, loans will be advanced in line with the Centre’s target...

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Bank officers serve notice for strike on Dec 11

The All-India Bank Officers’ Confederation (Aiboc) has given a call for a nationwide strike on December 11 in support of its various demands.The notice of strike has been served by mail to all concerned, says Harvinder Singh, general secretary, Aiboc.The one-day strike will be preceded by other types of protests including wearing of black badges while on duty on December 2; demonstrations at the headquarters of all banks on December 4; and mass demonstrations at major centres and state capitals on December 7.PENDING ISSUESSingh recalled that...

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Andhra Bank seeks to sell $209 mn worth bad loans to ARCs

State-run Andhra Bank is seeking to sell bad loans worth about 13.88 billion rupees ($209 million) to asset reconstruction companies, according to a newspaper advertisement on Monday.The bad loans are in 29 accounts, the bank said in the advertisement.Andhra Bank on Saturday reported a 74 per cent increase in its second-quarter net profit to 2.51 billion rupees from a year earlier. Its gross bad loan ratio eased to 5.71 per cent from 5.75 per cent in the first quarter. ($1 = 66.4200 Indian rupees)Source : Thehindubusinesslin...

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Govt to revise small savings rate by month end

Government is likely to reduce the interest rates on small savings schemes by the end of this month with a view to aligning them with the market rates.“The government will take a decision on reducing small savings rate by the end of this month,” a Finance Ministry official said.The ministry in September had announced its intention to review interest rates on small savings, which includes Post office savings and Public Provident Fund (PPF), after bankers said high rates on such schemes run by the government make fixed deposits of banks uncompetitive.The...

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Allahabad Bank Q2 net up at Rs 177 cr

Allahabad Bank has reported a net profit of Rs. 177.10 crore during the second quarter to September 30, 2015 against Rs. 141.44 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. The bank's gross NPA stood at Rs. 7,985.75 crore (Rs 7,674.27 crore). Source : Thehindubusinesslin...

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Vijaya Bank opens Retail Assets Processing Centre at Ahmedabad

Vijaya Bank plans to increase its branch network in the Ahmedabad Region by adding three more branches during this financial year. The bank plans to scale up its business from Rs. 5,191 crore as of September 2015, to cross Rs. 7,000 crore by the end of the fiscal.At the launch of Retail Assets Centralized Processing Centre (RACPC) at the Regional headquarters at Ahmedabad, A Murali Krishna, Deputy General Manager and Regional Head, Vijaya Bank, informed that the bank plans to more than double its home loan advances from Rs. 38 crore last year...

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PNB shifting gears to become a retail bank in big way

Punjab National Bank (PNB) is "shifting gears" to change itself into a retail bank in a big way, Usha Ananthasubramanian, Managing Director and CEO, has said.As part of risk diversification strategy, the bank will focus on expanding the share of "small value loans” in its balance sheet, Usha said at a press conference to announce the second quarter results.Special focus will be on retail loans. There is ample room for PNB to expand its retail loan book and this would be the way forward, she said.For the second quarter ended September 30 this...

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SBI reports 25% jump in Q2 net profit to Rs. 3,879 cr

State Bank of India (SBI), the country’s largest bank, reported a 25% jump in net profit for the July to September quarter to Rs. 3,879 crore. The profit was driven by a jump in other income due to strong performance of treasury operations and lower provisions for bad loans.Net profit for the second quarter of the last fiscal year was at Rs. 3,100 crore.Net interest income, difference between interest earned and expended, was at Rs. 14,253 crore , up 7 per cent from Rs. 13,275 crore in the comparable quarter last year. Other income rose 36%...

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Bank of Baroda Q2 profit tumbles as provisions spike

Bank of Baroda Ltd's, India's second-biggest state-run lender by assets, second-quarter profit slumped about 89 per cent on Friday, hit by a sharp rise in provisions as bad loans jumped.Shares in the Mumbai-based bank, which in August became one of the first state owned lenders to appoint a private sector chairman, tumbled almost 10 per cent at the market open. At 10.10 am, the stock was down 3.3 per cent or Rs. 5.40 at Rs. 154.10 on the BSE.Net profit fell to Rs. 124 crore ($18.9 million) for its quarter ended September 30 from Rs. 1,104 crore...

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Union Bank net zooms 77% at Rs. 658 cr

Union Bank of India today reported a massive jump of 77 per cent in its net profit to Rs. 658 crore for the September quarter.The bank had reported net profit of Rs. 371 crore in the July—September quarter of the previous fiscal.Global business grew by 7.4 per cent to Rs. 5,84,687 crore as on September 30 of the current fiscal, while deposits soared by 10.2 per cent to Rs. 3,30,665 crore, Union Bank said in a statement.Advances grew by 3.9 per cent to Rs. 2,54,022 crore.Net interest income for July—September quarter of 2015—16 increased by...

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Vijaya Bank Q2 net drops 20% to Rs. 115 cr

Vijaya Bank on Friday reported a 19.80 per cent fall in its July-September quarter net profit at Rs. 115.29 crore, impacted by higher provisions.The bank had registered a net profit of Rs. 143.75 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.Total income of the bank stood at Rs. 3,202.89 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2015 from Rs. 3,253.75 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago.“Even though there is increase in the operating profit, but because of the increased provision net profit has come down. This quarter we had to make...

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PNB net profit rises 8% to Rs 621 cr in Q2

Punjab National Bank today reported 8 per cent rise in standalone net profit to Rs 621.03 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2015—16.The bank had posted net profit of Rs 575.34 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year.Interest earned was Rs 12,345 crore for the July-September quarter of the current fiscal, as against Rs 11,462 crore in the year-ago period.The bank’s provisioning was higher at Rs 1,882 crore as opposed to Rs 1,768 crore a year ago.PNB’s total income has increased from Rs 13,020.46 crore in July-September...

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Yes Bank, IndusInd Bank in fray for GE Capital Asset

Global diversified conglomerate General Electric is in the midst of exiting most of its financial assets to concentrate on its industrial segments as part of a global strategy and its India divestment strategy is picking up pace, as sources tell ET NOW that GE Capital India's medical equipment financing business is on the block and has attracted the attention of top private sector banks." Yes Bank and IndusInd Bank are amongst suitors in the fray for the asset and currently multiple suitors are conducting due diligence," a source privy to ongoing...

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Lakshmi Vilas Bank launches co-branded credit card

Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB) today launched a co-branded credit card in partnership with SBI Cards and Payment Services, commemorating LVB's 90th anniversary.The Tamil Nadu-based bank had partnered with payment solutions provider SBI Cards and Payment Services to offer its first Lakshmi Vilas Bank-SBI Credit Card, a top official said."This is a win-win concept for us. For the first time we are launching this co-branded credit card. We would like to take this relationship (with SBI Cards and Payment Services) to much greater levels," LVB Chief Operating...

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Suresh N Patel is new MD & CEO of Andhra Bank

Suresh N Patel has assumed charge as Managing Director and CEO of Andhra Bank.According to a release issued here, Patel assumed charge in New Delhi on Monday.Patel, who had started his career in banking as an agricultural officer in Dena Bank in 1981, had earlier served as executive director of Oriental Bank of Commerce and has diverse experience in various roles.A graduate in science and law, he is also a certified member of Indian Institute of Bankers. Source : Thehindubusinesslin...

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Finance Ministry makes 4 CEO-level appointments at public sector banks

The Finance Ministry has appointed new chief executives in four public sector banks.Mahesh Kumar Jain, currently executive director at Indian Bank, has been elevated as Managing Director & CEO of the bank. He has been appointed for a period of three years.The Finance Ministry has also appointed Suresh N Patel as Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Andhra Bank. Prior to this appointment, Patel was an executive director at Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC).Ravi Krishan Takkar, who was executive director at Dena Bank, has...

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UAE bank NBAD purchased RBS's offshore loan book in India

National Bank of Abu Dhabi( NBAD), the largest lender by assets in the United Arab Emirates, bought Royal Bank of Scotland's offshore loan book in India for 3 billion dirhams ($816.8 million) in October, the bank's chief executive Alex Thursby said in a conference call on Wednesday.The bank is planning to start operations in India next week. Source : Thehindubusinesslin...

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Sundaram BNP Paribas posts 27% rise in net profit

Sundaram BNP Paribas Home Finance has reported a 27 per cent increase in its net profit for the second quarter ended September 30, 2015 at Rs. 40.52 crore.Income from operations rose marginally from Rs. 238 crore to Rs. 242 crore during the second quarter. The company had disbursed Rs. 450 crore in this quarter compared with Rs. 537 crore in the same quarter last year.Srinivas Acharya, Managing Director, Sundaram BNP Paribas Home Finance, said in a press release that the real estate sector continues to be sluggish.He said, "The recovery has...

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Syndicate Bank Q2 net up at Rs. 332.4 cr

Syndicate Bank has reported a 5.3 per cent growth in net profit for the September quarter on higher interest income and lower provisioning.The Manipal headquartered public sector bank reported a net profit of Rs. 332.37 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2015 agasint Rs. 315.60 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.Net interest income, the difference between the interest earned and expended, grew 12 per cent to Rs. 1,594.75 crore from Rs. 1,422.48 crore in the corresponding period last year. Operating profit for the quarter was...

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MUDRA sanctions Rs. 100 cr refinance to SKS Microfin; scrip zooms 5.52%

Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency Ltd (MUDRA) has sanctioned a refinance line of Rs. 100 crore for SKS Microfinance at 10 per cent interest per annum."This is the first refinance line availed by us,'' S Dilli Raj, President of SKS Microfinance said in a release issued here on Wednesday.At a rate of 10 per cent, this was lower than the regular term loans from conventional lenders. ``We are already the lowest cost lender in MFI segment,'' he added.The development is expected to bring down the cost of interest bearing liabilities for...

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Pradeep Gupta elevated as State Bank of India MD

The Central Government has appointed Pradeep Kumar Gupta as the new Managing Director of State Bank of India (SBI), the country’s largest bank.Gupta will succeed P Pradeep Kumar, who will superannuate on October 31 this year, the bank said.At present, Gupta is the Deputy Managing Director at SBI and will take over the post on or after November 1, 2015 and up to March 31, 2020, the date of his superannuation, or until further orders, whichever is earlier, the bank statement said. Source : Thehindubusinesslin...

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PNB slashes car loan rates for women borrowers

Punjab National Bank (PNB) has cut the car loan rates for women borrowers from 9.85 per cent to 9.75 per cent.The bank also announced that housing loan is available to women borrowers at 9.60 per cent for any amount for the longest repayment period of 30 years.PNB had recently cut its base rate to 9.60 per cent with effect from October 1.Base rate is the minimum rate below which a bank cannot lend.srivats.kr@thehindu.co.in Source : Thehindubusinesslin...

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South Indian Bank Q2 net up 22.4%

The Kerala-based South Indian Bank has posted a 22.38 per cent growth in its net profit at Rs. 93.38 crore in Q2 of FY16. Net profit in the corresponding period for the previous year was Rs. 76.30 crore.V G Mathew, Managing Director and CEO, told reporters here on Saturday that the consistency in achieving operating profit, treasury operations and other income have significantly contributed for the growth in net profit in the second quarter.Total business increased by Rs. 10,687 core to Rs. 93,251 crore, registering a 12.94 per cent YoY. Deposits...

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‘Payments bank, a historic opportunity for India Post’

“Trust me ladies and gentlemen, India Post will soon be a force to reckon with. Until now we (India Post) were seen as a slumbering giant. Not anymore. We have woken up. This time we are not going to give it up, as payments bank presents a historic opportunity for India Post.”So said MS Ramanujan, Member (Banking & HRD), Department of Posts, at the 3rd Financial Inclusion symposium organised by dun & bradstreet, exuding confidence about India Post regaining its spot under the sun.“It’s very exciting for us as the payments industry is...

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SBI Mutual Fund’s AUM likely to cross Rs 1 trillion-mark soon

Assets under management (AUM) of SBI Mutual Fund has crossed Rs.98,000 crore and is soon likely to cross Rs.1 trillion-mark, its managing director said today.“At SBI MF, we have recently crossed the AUM of Rs.98,000 crore and we are all set to cross the mark of Rs. 1 trillion in near future,” SBI MF Managing Director and CEO Dinesh Khara told PTI here.He was speaking on the sidelines of an event organised by Indian Chamber of Commerce.In its bid to increase the subscriber base, the company is currently conducting a host of activities which...

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Federal Bank's missed call banking service

Federal Bank has launched another digital service called Missed Call Banking, a simple way to get account balance on mobile.The service enables customers to get their account balance by giving a missed call to a dedicated mobile number. To avail the facility, customers have to do a onetime registration by sending an SMS (ACTBAL14 Digit account number) to 9895088888 from their mobile number registered with the bank.Upon successful registration, the customer will receive an instant confirmation message. Thereafter, a simple missed call to 8431900900...

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Expansion pace eased on investor feedback: DCB bank MD

After facing investor flak, private sector lender DCB bank decides to change gears on the pace of its branch expansion to open 150 branches in 24 months from 12 months as decided earlier.Shares of the bank fell 30 per cent since October 13, when the bank announced its results in which it laid out its plans to double its branch network in the next one year. Fearing its profit would shrink on such a plan, the market gave its negative feedback which affected the stock price.In a statement to the exchanges, DCB bank said, “In view of the feedback...

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Lakshmi Vilas Bank Q2 net profit jumps 42% as bad loans fall

Lakshmi Vilas Bank has reported a 42 per cent rise in net profit for the September quarter at Rs. 45 crore as against a profit of Rs. 31.50 crore in the year ago quarter.Net interest income grew to Rs. 160 crore, up by 19 per cent from Rs. 134 crore in the same quarter a year ago. Other income rose marginally to Rs. 64 crore as against Rs. 63 crore in the June to September period in FY14.The asset quality of the bank improved with gross non-performing assets (NPA) substantially down to 1.89 per cent from 3.72 per cent as on September 30, last...

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Karur Vysya Bank net surges 57% to Rs. 142 cr in Q2

Karur Vysya Bank today posted a 57.14 per cent jump in net profit at Rs. 142.22 crore for the second quarter ended September 30.The bank had recorded a net profit of Rs. 90.50 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal, Karur Vysya Bank said in a regulatory filing.The total income of the lender also increased to Rs. 1,570.27 crore during the quarter from Rs. 1,494.86 crore over the corresponding period of 2014—15 fiscal.During the quarter, the gross non—performing assets (NPAs) rose to 1.96 per cent from 1.36 per cent at the end of second...

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HDFC Bank suspends official involved in Bank of Baroda scam

Amid the alleged involvement of HDFC Bank official Kamal Kalra in the Rs. 6,000-crore illegal remittances, the private sector bank has suspended Kalra pending the investigation.The scam involves Rs. 6,000 crore illegal remittances that have suspected to be flown out from Bank of Baroda's Ashok Vihar branch in New Delhi to Hong Kong and Dubai.In a statement, HDFC Bank said, “The bank has a zero-tolerance policy for any misconduct on the part of its staff and any deviation from its clearly defined processes is viewed very seriously. Swift action...

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Bank of Baroda chairman meets Jaitley

The Finance Ministry on Wednesday took stock of the alleged Rs. 6100 crore remittance scam in public sector Bank of Baroda.Newly appointed chairman of BoB Ravi Venkateshan also met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley."It was a courtesy meeting with the Finance Minister. Investigations are onit would be inappropriate to say anything” he said after the meeting.However sources said the case is likely to be probed by the Serious Fraud Investigations Officethe amount of fund alleged to be involved could be lesser than estimated.Checks would be made over...

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Jan Dhan deposits cross Rs 25,000 cr

In a big boost to the government’s financial inclusion agenda, deposits in bank accounts under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) have exceeded Rs.25,000 crore.“As on October 7, the deposits collected stood at Rs.25,146.97 crore,” said the Finance Ministry in a statement, adding that zero-balance accounts are now less than 40 per cent of the total accounts. The ministry said State Bank of India, United Bank of India and Oriental Bank of Commerce are the major contributors to PMJDY. Source : Thehindubusinesslin...

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DCB Bank Q2 net dips 10%

Private sector lender DCB Bank reported a 10 per cent decline in net profit to Rs.37 crore in the second quarter ended September 2015 mainly due to higher provisioning and tax expenses.Provisioning towards bad loans and other contingencies rose 58 per cent to Rs.22 crore as against Rs.14 crore a year ago.Tax expenses rose nearly four-fold to Rs.20 crore from Rs.5 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal.Net interest income, the difference between interest earned and interest expended, grew 27 per cent to Rs.150 crore ( Rs.118 crore a...

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After IOB, RBI may pull up Allahabad Bank, Central Bank of India and Andhra Bank

The Reserve Bank of India may now turn its focus on Allahabad Bank, Central Bank of India and Andhra Bank as their dodgy loans and provision for loan losses are getting precariously close to that of Indian Overseas Bank's -the bank on which the central bank has imposed restrictions on branch expansion.On Monday, the Chennai-based Indian Overseas Bank had informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that the RBI has initiated a Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) on the bank, which is triggered if bad loans rise above 10 per cent, capital adequacy ratio slips...

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ICICI Bank launches in-store mobile-based payments with ‘mVisa’

ICICI Bank, India’s largest private sector bank, launched a service to enable customers to make electronic payments from their smartphones at physical stores, e-commerce and other deliveries at home, radio taxis, and utility billers, among others.This service is based on ‘mVisa’, a new mobile payment solution from Visa. ICICI Bank claims to be the first bank globally to launch a mobile app-based ‘mVisa’ solution for consumers and merchants.With this service, users of ‘Pockets’, ICICI Bank's app, can make cashless payments from their smartphones...

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Banks can sanction 90% loan for property upto Rs 30 lac: RBI

Banks can now provide home loans up to 90 per cent for properties that cost Rs. 30 lakh or below, RBI said today.Earlier, the facility was available only in cases where the cost was up to Rs. 20 lakh.This will benefit those home seekers who plan to buy properties in the range of Rs. 20-30 lakh.The RBI’s decision comes in the wake of all major banks reducing interest rate on home loans.The Reserve Bank, through a circular, said that in the case of ‘individual housing loans’ falling under the loan category of up to Rs. 30 lakh, the LTV (Loan...

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Bajaj Allianz Life ties-up with Dhanlaxmi Bank for distribution of products

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance and Dhanlaxmi Bank have signed long-term agreement for a bancassurance partnership. As part of the agreement, the bank will continue to be a Corporate Agent for nine years and sell life insurance products of Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance.Dhanlaxmi Bank has been a partner of Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance since 2009 and has done business worth nearly Rs. 400 crore. The relationship between Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance and Dhanlaxmi Bank started off with customised insurance solutions for the bank's customers.Bajaj Allianz...

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Axis Bank realigns home loan rates; introduces new slab

Country’s third largest private lender Axis Bank, on Tuesday, introduced a new slab for its home loan borrowers with offers starting at 9.60 per cent onward.The newly introduced slab is for loans up to Rs. 28 lakh, an official spokesperson of the bank said.For salaried borrowers, home loans up to Rs. 28 lakh will come at 9.60 per cent, which is only 0.10 per cent over its revised base rate of 9.50 per cent, he said.While the loans above Rs. 28 lakh will attract 9.65 per cent interest, he added.The rates compare with rival ICICI Bank and HDFC’s...

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J&K Bank slashes base rate by 35 bps to 9.5%

J&K Bank on Wednesday said that it has reduced its base rate by 35 basis points, making its loans cheaper for new as well as existing customers in Jammu & Kashmir and across the country.The base rate of the bank stands reduced to 9.50 per cent from 9.85 per cent with immediate effect.Maushtaq Ahmed, Chairman & CEO, J&K Bank announced this decision after the bank's Asset Liability Committee meeting at its Corporate Headquarters in Srinagar.     srivats.kr@thehindu.co.in Source : Thehindubusinesslin...

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IRDAI chairman stresses on insuring all assets

There is a need to insure all assets of the country, according to T S Vijayan, Chairman of Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).He was speaking at a function organised by ICICI Lombard to mark the sale of one lakh long-term two-wheeler insurance policies here on Wednesday."'In the US, 80 per cent of assets are insured, while in India this is only at 7 per cent," he said.Saying that there were 54 life and general insurance companies in the country, Vijayan said there is huge scope for increasing insurance penetration...

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BoB, Andhra Bank, Legal & General infuse Rs. 150 cr in IndiaFirst Life

Bank of Baroda, Andhra Bank and Legal & General have together infused an additional Rs. 150 crore in their life insurance venture — IndiaFirst Life Insurance — taking the total share capital to Rs. 625 crore.The equity infusion is proportionate to the shareholding pattern of the three entities, a statement from IndiaFirst Life said. Bank of Baroda holds 44 per cent, Andhra Bank 30 per cent, while Legal & General holds the remaining 26 per cent in IndiaFirst.R.M. Vishakha, MD and CEO, IndiaFirst Life Insurance said, “This demonstrates...

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