Happay, Ratnakar Bank launch debit card with expense mgmt system

Sony Jacob, the Finance and Accounts head at Bangalore-based micro-brewery Windmills Craftworks, is a happy employee ever since his company started using Happay Cards to manage the company’s employee expense.

Jacob said the card, which is integrated with mobile and web dashboard, automatically records and verifies the data and hence can directly be imported into accounting. “Earlier we used to dedicate one person especially for petty cash settlement, checking for supporting documents. Now with Happay Cards, the process has become streamlined and paperless. We are also spending 70 per cent less time in managing expenses,” Jacob added.

Meanwhile a Bangalore-based entrepreneur and restaurateur Griffith David also uses Happay Cards for his small firm.

Happay Card is a product of start-up Happay, founded by IITians from Kharagpur, Anshul Rai and Varun Rathi in 2012. It is one of its kind, business expense management solution that streamlines an organization’s expense workflow from end-to-end (expense reporting to accounting) and gives real-time visibility and control over business spending. All purchases done from this card are auto-captured on the Happay platform. Employees can snap photos of receipts, record cash expenses and submit expense reports in minutes, on-the-go without bothering about collecting or forgetting to submit the bills on time.

Happay has exclusively tied up with Ratnakar Bank for these co-branded Happay Business Expense VISA Card. Happay’s Anshul Rai said, “The initial results from our pilot customers has been very encouraging and we’re pleased to now take this solution to the broader market. We hope to tap more SMEs as our solutions are far cheaper than the already present ERP solutions used by large corporates.”

Ritesh Pai, Senior Vice President and Head Direct Banking Channels, RBL Bank, said that the bank is looking at tapping its clients for Happay. “We expect to disburse about 15,000 cards by end of this year.”


Source : Thehindubusinessline

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RBL Bank launches digital wallet for e-commerce

Old private sector lender RBL Bank (earlier known as Ratnakar Bank) has tied up with payments company TranServ to introduce bank-sponsored digital wallet called Shmart for online retailers in India.

“Developed specifically to address the unique needs of online retailers in India, the digital payment product suite -- Shmart has been deployed by over 150 merchants,” RBL Bank said in a statement.

Online merchants can offer their customers faster checkout, instant refunds, secure storage of bank cards, vouchers and coupons, and an RBL Bank sponsored semi-closed loop pre-paid account to store funds.

They can also process transactions across multiple channels – mobile, Web or point-of-sale (PoS). Shmart integrates with the interface of e-commerce Web sites and mobile apps, allowing retailers to control their brand and their customers’ experience.


Source : Thehindubusinessline

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RBL Bank to launch IPO in 9 months

RBL Bank, formerly known as Ratnakar Bank, plans to raise funds through an initial public offer which will hit the market in the next 8-9 months.

“We are preparing ourselves for the IPO and it may hit market in 8-9 months. It would not happen this fiscal but next calendar year,” RBL Bank Managing Director Vishwavir Ahuja told PTI.

The quantum of offer has not been finalised by the board of the bank, he said, adding that the decision will be taken in the next few months after taking into account various factors including Basel III requirement.

The bank has been able to build scale and size in the last four years so that it gets right valuation, he said.

The capital is required for the next phase of operation as the bank has already done with transformation stage, he said, adding it has got high technology and risk management system.

The bank services more than 6 lakh customers and has a total business size of over Rs. 26,000 crore. As of September total deposits were Rs. 12,000 crore while advances stood at Rs. 14,000 crore.

The bank posted a net profit of Rs. 87 crore for six months ended September 2014, while for the entire 2013-14 the profit stood at Rs. 93 crore.

“So we have almost matched the net profit of the last fiscal in the first two quarters of the current financial year,” he said.

It got capital support of about Rs. 1,500 crore from global and domestic investors in the last three years.

The bank had raised Rs. 328 crore from a group of global investors, including CDC Group and Asia Capital and Advisors in April 2014.

Existing investors, including International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Gaja Capital, also participated in the capital infusion.

Last year, the bank acquired some assets of Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS), including the UK bank’s mortgages, credit card and loan—against—property portfolios.


Source : The Hindu

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Ratnakar Bank gets Rs 328 crore infusion from global investors

Ratnakar Bank said it has received Rs 328 crore in capital infusion from leading global investors like CDC Group and Asia Capital & Advisors.

Existing investors, including International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Gaja Capital, also participated in this round of capital infusion, the private lender said in a statement here.

The exercise was part of the bank's third round of financing which started three years ago.

"These new funds will assist the bank in expanding its branch network in semi-urban and rural areas of as well as providing a suite of financial products and services to the unbanked sections of society," the statement said.

Founded in 1943, the bank has its main markets in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Goa. The lender's current business size stood at over Rs 21,000 crore and it offers services to more than 5,00,000 customers.

"IFC's repeat investment will assist Ratnakar in expanding its services to the under-served SMEs, helping increase access to finance," said Serge Devieux, IFC Director for South Asia.

Commenting on its investment, Srini Nagarajan of CDC said "we are strongly aligned with Ratnakar's strategy to expand and provide a range of financial services to customer segments that are under-served by the market. Our investment approach will complement their strong management team as they continue to implement the bank's growth strategy."

Francis Andrew Rozario of Asia Capital said, "We have been impressed by the track record of the management and staff of the bank and its achievements, which include successful transformation to their performance across all segments of the economy".


Source: Economic Times

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CCI gives green signal to Ratnakar Bank-RBS deal

Fair trade regulator Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved private sector lender Ratnakar Bank’ proposal to buy Royal Bank of Scotland’s credit card business, mortgage portfolio and banking operation in the country, saying the deal will not have an adverse impact on competition.

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) mortgage portfolio includes housing loans, while banking business includes providing small and medium sized enterprises with high end products and services.

In its order dated September 10, the CCI said the proposal “is not likely to have an appreciable adverse effect on competition in India and, therefore, the Commission hereby approves the proposed combination under...the (Competition) Act”.

The regulator said it has observed that after the proposed deal between the banks comes into effect, RBS would exit the credit card business, mortgage portfolio and business banking segment.

“Currently, ihas no presence in credit card business. It is observed that the presence of Ratnakar Bank in the mortgage and banking business in India would be insignificant after the proposed combination,” the CCI said.

Following the execution of the “Master Sale and Purchase Agreement” entered into between Ratnakar Bank and RBS last month, the entities approached CCI for its approval.

Mid-sized private sector lender Ratnakar Bank had announced it had acquired British banking major RBS’ business banking segment, credit cards and mortgage portfolio for an undisclosed amount.

The Kolhapur, Maharashtra headquartered bank has a customer base of 5 lakh with a total business size of Rs 14,500 crore.

Source: thehindubusinessline

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Ratnakar Bank to acquire RBS assets

Private sector lender Ratnakar bank will acquire Royal bank of Scotland’s (RBS) Business Banking, Credit Cards and Mortgage business in India.

The Kolhapur-based bank would also acquire over 1.2 lakh customers of RBS across the three business segments which form the part of the purchase deal. The RBS employees associated with these businesses are proposed to be absorbed by Ratnakar Bank.

The deal size was not disclosed by the bank.

The RBS assets sale was on the cards for the past few months with many banks in the race, including Yes Bank, IndusInd Bank and HSBC among others.

“We are glad we were not the one of the banks in the speculation and still have managed to purchase the RBS assets. The portfolios are of high quality and will give a strong platform over and above our existing business,” said a person familiar with the deal.

The business banking holds high transactional current account and forex franchise. Our mortgage business was 8-12 months old and this will add to the portfolio, the person added.

The transaction is expected to help the Bank create further capabilities in a very short span of time and enhance the current and savings account (CASA). RBS customers would also get access to the larger and expanding branch network along with broader banking capabilities of Ratnakar Bank.

This will also mark Ratnakar Bank’s entry into the credit card business.

Over the last three years the bank has been building scale with the entry of new CEO and Managing Director Vishwavir Ahuja and other top management changes.

The acquisition will be subject to approvals from Competition Commission of India (CCI).

Derek Nazareth, Head of Retail and Commercial Banking, RBS India said: “Over the next few weeks we will be writing to all of our clients who are affected, and working closely with Ratnakar Bank to ensure a seamless transition for our customers.”

PricewaterhouseCoopers were the advisors to Ratnakar Bank while Morgan Stanley and RBS M&IB Asia Pacific advised to RBS.

There is no impact on RBS’s Corporate and Institutional Business (Markets and International Banking) or its Private Banking businesses in India. RBS will continue to offer financing, risk management, wholesale and investment banking, cash, payments, trade finance and a comprehensive range of wealth management solutions to its clients.

Source: thehindubusinessline

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Ratnakar Bank implements Finacle

Ratnakar Bank announced that it has deployed the Finacle core banking solution.

The bank aims to grow its number of branches to 125 in the next three months and to about 300 over the next three years. Ratnakar Bank also seeks new business opportunities to launch several new products across various verticals. To fulfil this objective and gain a competitive edge, the bank intends to leverage best-in-class banking practices on a new-age technology platform.

It will also enable the bank to take a 360-degree view of customer relationships which, in turn, would improve customer experience and enhance loyalty. This alliance will also facilitate integration of all the banking channels, including online, mobile and branch offices.

Speaking on the selection, Mr Vishwavir Ahuja, Managing Director and CEO, Ratnakar Bank, said: “In the transformation of the bank to a vibrant new-age entity, technology will play a critical role. Since we have the least legacy, we believe that bringing in the latest technology will become one of our key differentiators.”

venkatesh.ganesh@thehindu.co.in

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Ratnakar Bank ties up with Infosys for core banking product

Private sector lender Ratnakar Bank announced a partnership with IT firm Infosys. The bank plans to revamp its products and services by deploying Finacle, a core banking product from Infosys.

The deal will see Ratnakar Bank spend Rs 50 crore on this system over the next five years.

Mr Vishwavir Ahuja, Managing Director and CEO of the bank, said, “The bank has been in the transformation mode for the past 18 months and wants technology to be the core driver for banking. Finacle's in-built CRM (Customer relationship management) will help us connect to customers.”

The business growth of the bank has trebled in the past 18 months, while the employee strength doubled to 1,400, Mr. Ahuja added. The bank's branch network increased from 80 to 150 in the past two years and the bank aims to add about 50 more. “Till last year, we had no ATM presence and currently outsource about 60. We plan to add 150 by 2013,” Mr Ahuja said. The bank had also launched its debit cards recently.

beena.parmar@thehindu.co.in

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Ratnakar Bank plans to double branch network

Private sector lender Ratnakar Bank plans to ramp up its branch network to 200 branches in the next 12-15 months, its Managing Director & CEO, Mr Vishwavir Ahuja, has said.

Plans are afoot to open 30-35 branches in the next 4-5 months including in places like Chennai and Hyderabad where the bank currently has no presence, Mr Ahuja, who headed Bank of America in India for years, told Business Line here.

“We already have 30-35 branch licences which will be used in the next 4-5 months”, he said.

Mr Ahuja was in the Capital for the launch of Ratnakar Bank’s Delhi main office and flagship branch at the commercial business district at Connaught Place making this the 101st branch of the bank.

Ratnakar Bank, which is the country’s smallest scheduled commercial bank, is aiming at a network of about 250 ATMs by end March 2013, said Mr Rajeev Ahuja, Head-Strategy & Financial Markets.

The bank had in the beginning of this year raised Rs 700 crore from a group of investors to fund its growth. The clutch of investors included private equity firms and also one financial institution (HDFC) which bought a combined stake of over 30 per cent in Ratnakar Bank.

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