Banking News 31-08-2014
UCO Bank opens 1.85 lakh savings accounts in Himachal
ublic sector lender UCO Bank has opened 1.85 lakh savings bank accounts under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana in Himachal Pradesh.
The Kolkata-based bank had till August 28 organised 5,111 camps in Himachal Pradesh. Read more
SBI to hire 2,986 probationary officers
State Bank of India has notified recruitment of 2,986 probationary officers to work in its group of banks across the country.
The online registration can be done during September 1 – 18, 2014. The written examination would be conducted tentatively in November 2014.
Graduates who are in the age group of 21-30 years are eligible to apply and age relaxation would be extended as per the Government norms.
The total emoluments vary depending upon the place of posting and the perquisites by individual banks. Those posted in Mumbai, for instance, would get an average monthly salary of Rs. 65,000, SBI said in its notification. Read more
Corporation Bank keen to ramp up CASA deposits
Corporation Bank is keen to ramp up the share of current and savings account deposits in its overall deposit base, its Chairman and Managing Director S R Bansal said.
"Our CASA deposits level is very low. From the current level of 17 per cent, we want to take it to 22 per cent,'' Bansal told Business Line here.
Towards this end, Corporation Bank plans to open 500 new branches this year. At least 30 per cent of the new branches will come in unbanked semi-urban and rural areas, he said.
The bank is targeting a 15-17 per cent growth in deposits and advances this fiscal, he added.
Jan Dhan accounts
On the comprehensive financial inclusion plan of the new Modi-led Government, Bansal said the bank has opened nearly five lakh accounts on the launch date of August 28. This is against the target of 3.5 lakh for that date. Read more
Ministry asks LIC to consider life cover for all Jan Dhan beneficiaries
The Jan Dhan Yojana, a financial inclusion mission to be launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi later today, could be further sweetened if the Finance Ministry has its way.
The Finance Ministry has asked State-owned Life Insurance Corporation to see if the insurance behemoth could provide life cover of ₹30,000 to each of the 15 crore new bank account-holders proposed to be covered under the Jan Dhan Yojana.
If agreed to by the LIC, the life cover will be in addition to the accident cover of ₹1 lakh to be provided under the Jan Dhan Yojana. Read more
Indian Bank to revise FCNR (B) term deposits
Public sector Indian Bank will revise the interest rate on foreign currency non-resident (banking) term deposits from tomorrow.
“For FCNR (B) deposits, in USD, the revised interest rate has been revised to 2.34 per cent (from 2.36 per cent) for deposits of one year and above but less than two years,” the Chennai-based bank said in a statement.
For deposits of two years and above but less than three years, it has been revised to 2.71 per cent from the existing 2.76 per cent.
Interest rates have been revised to 3.64 per cent for deposits of three years and above but less than four years from the existing 3.71 per cent, it said.
For deposits of four years and above but less than five years, it has been revised to 4 per cent from the existing 4.11 per cent.
Interest rates have been fixed at 4.27 per cent for deposits up to five years only from the existing 4.4 per cent, the statement said. Read more
United Bank of India files caveat in Apex court against Kingfisher
State-owned United Bank of India (UBI) has filed a caveat in the Supreme Court against Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) shortly after Calcutta High Court division bench’s judgement was delivered yesterday.
“We filed the caveat against KFA in SC shortly after Calcutta HC delivered the judgement yesterday”, executive director of UBI D Narang told PTI today.
The division bench of the High Court dismissed a KFA appeal against UBI and upheld decision of single judge of not allowing the company to be represented by a lawyer.
The order said that either KFA chairman Vijay Mallya could appear or send a company representative for the hearing in front of the bank’s grievance redressal panel. Read more
Canara Bank to sell ₹900 cr of bad loans by end-Sept
Bangalore-headquartered Canara Bank is looking to sell bad assets worth ₹900 crore by the second quarter (ending September) of this fiscal. According to its Chairman and Managing Director RK Dubey, this will be the third straight quarter when the bank will opt for sale of bad assets.
In the April-June quarter this year, the bank sold non-performing assets (NPAs) worth ₹600 crore, and in the January-March quarter, around ₹1,300 crore.
“Our aim is to bring down Gross NPAs to 2 per cent; and Net NPAs to 1.5 per cent by the end of this fiscal,” he told newspersons on the sidelines of a Banking Conclave organised by FICCI(Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry).
Last fiscal, bank’s Gross NPAs stood at 2.49 per cent and Net NPAs at 1.98 per cent. Read more
Jaitley calls for better risk management from public sector banks
The Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, on Thursday made it clear to public sector banks that the Government expects much better standards of risk management practices from them.
This remark is significant as it came in the backdrop of increased incidents of frauds coming to light in the banking system.
"Some recent events are disturbing. I hope it will only be a drop in the ocean," Jaitley said at the 108th foundation day event of Indian Bank in the Capital.
Jaitley said "credibility" is extremely importantant as far as the functioning of banking system is concerned.
"Banks must endeavour to continously have improved standards of credibility," he said. Read more
Savings in financial assets rise: RBI report
Savings in deposits and small savings of individuals increased in the 2013-14, while saw a drop in mutual funds and currency.
As per the Annual Report of the RBI, savings in deposits by the household sector increased by Rs. 1 lakh crore in a year to Rs. 6.91 lakh crore in 2013-14 as against Rs. 5.91 lakh crore in 2012-13.
The saving deposits are about 59 per cent to the gross financial savings, of which about 53 per cent constitute deposits with commercial banks.
Net financial savings of household sector grew 13 per cent to Rs. 8.19 lakh crore as against Rs. 7.22 lakh crore in the previous year.
This is for the first time that the RBI released data on the financial saving of the household sector. Read more
Canara Bank plans to raise Rs. 3,000 cr via QIP
Bangalore-headquartered Canara Bank aims to raise ₹ 3,000 crore through a qualified institutional placement (QIP) issue.
The QIP issue is expected any time next month, according to RK Dubey, Chairman and Managing Director, Canara Bank.
Dubey was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of FICCI Banking conclave.
A follow-on public offer (FPO) is expected next fiscal (FY16). Read more
‘Financial inclusion is a big game-changer for banks’
The 95-year-old Mumbai-headquartered Union Bank of India, which has around 3,900 branches across the country, has deployed technology extensively in banking services. Recently, the state-owned bank launched ‘tabulous banking,’ a tablet-based account-opening process, which the bank’s Chairman and Managing Director Arun Tiwari, in an interview with BusinessLine, termed a huge success.
Tiwari, 57, who took up the reins in December last, says the financial inclusion policy is a big opportunity for public sector banks as it will help them go deep into the countryside and improve their bottomline. Tiwari is positive about the economy which he said would pick up “during Q3 and Q4 this financial year.” Read more
ICICI Bank offers EMI on debit cards
ICICI Bank, the country’s largest private sector bank, has launched EMI (equated monthly instalments) facility on debit cards to enable its customers to convert their high value transactions into easy instalments.
The private lender has tied up with Samsung India to offer this facility across 9,000 stores in the country, including large format retailers, multi-brand outlets and standalone stores, for purchase of Samsung products like mobile phones, tablets and consumer electronics, among others.
The bank is the first in the country to introduce this facility, ICICI Bank said in a statement.
Rajiv Sabharwal, Executive Director, ICICI Bank, said, “As we approach the festive season, we believe this initiative will empower over 22 million ICICI Bank debit card customers to buy products of their choice and pay in easy EMIs.” Read more
United Bank of India sets up centralised retail hub in Kolkata
Kolkata-based lender, United Bank of India (UBI), has set up a centralised retail hub at its headquarters in the city, for faster processing and clearance of retail loans.
Inaugurated on August 15 by the bank’s Executive Directors, Sanjay Arya and Deepak Narang, the centralised retail hub will look at extending hassle free and time-bound sanction of housing & mortgage loans, the bank said in a release. Read more
Ban on campus recruitment of bank officers: Kerala HC order rings loud and clear
The ban on campus recruitment of officers in public sector banks has come into effect in light of the adverse strictures made by various courts.
The Ministry of Finance accepted as much while writing to the heads of banks directing them to stop the practice at once.
BOOSTS UNION MORAL
Among the earliest and most forthright observations by the courts had come as early as in 2006 from the High Court of Kerala in a related case (Sanal KC Vs SBI).
The observations boosted the moral of the Leftist student unions in the State that had built up a sustained campaign against campus recruitment of officers. Read more
Syndicate Bank case: Court to decide on bail pleas
A Delhi court on Tuesday reserved its order for tomorrow on the bail pleas of Chairman-cum-Managing Director (CMD) of Prakash Industries Ltd, Ved Prakash Agarwal, and its Director Vipul Agarwal, who along with others were arrested in the Syndicate Bank bribery case.
“I have heard arguments of counsel of accused Ved Prakash Agarwal and Vipul Agarwal. Order reserved for tomorrow,” Special CBI Judge Swarana Kanta Sharma said.
During the arguments on the bail applications, advocate Vijay Aggarwal, appearing for both the accused, told the court that CBI’s case against both his clients was merely on the basis of recorded conversations allegedly intercepted by the agency. Read more
RBI Governor to hold talks with unions on HR rejig
Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan will meet representatives of employees’ unions on Tuesday to explain to them and get their views on the proposed restructuring of the central bank’s employees, including appointing a Chief Operating Officer (COO) and bringing various departments under clusters.
RBI officials said the initial proposal had been prepared on the basis of year-long internal exercise conducted through Intranet and by a committee. “It is not something which the Governor himself has proposed,” said an official, adding that no decision had been taken that the COO would be in the rank of a Deputy Governor. Nor had any timeline been fixed for implementingthe proposal.
“There are misgivings about the proposal. That is why the Governor is talking to employees unions and associations to hear their views and clear their doubts,” a senior RBI official told Business Line.
The official said that by undertaking the restructuring exercise, it does not mean that everything is being rewritten. The effort is to regroup various departments and make things more logical.
The Governor had an interaction with the employees through video conferencing, the official added. On August 10, the RBI board approved the broad contours of the proposal and now specifics such as appointment of a COO would be presented before the board, as and when required. Read more
RBI board gives green signal for talks to appoint COO
The Reserve Bank of India’s board has given its approval for initiating a dialogue with the Government for creating an additional position of a Chief Operating Officer of the rank of Deputy Governor.
This is part of the Human Resources (HR) restructuring exercise, which also entails grouping of departments into five functional clusters, initiated by the central bank.
Financial Services Secretary GS Sandhu said appointment of Chief Operating Officer (COO) or fifth RBI Deputy Governor cannot take place without amending the RBI Act.
Nachiket Mor, former ICICI Bank Executive Director and Chairman of the RBI Committee on Comprehensive Financial Services for Small Business and Low Income Households, is seen as a contender for the COO’s position. The RBI said the purpose of the exercise is to align the organisational resources and structures of the Bank with the needs of the domestic economy and changes in the external environment. Read more
RBI to soon issue Rs. 1,000 denomination banknotes with inset letter 'R'
The Reserve Bank of India will soon issue Rs. 1,000 denomination banknotes with inset letter 'R' in the Mahatma Gandhi series-2005.
“The Reserve Bank will shortly issue Rs. 1,000 denomination banknotes incorporating rupee symbol, with ‘R’ inset letter, in the Mahatma Gandhi series-2005,” the RBI said in a notification.
The year of printing ‘2014’ will be printed on the reverse of the banknote.
The design of these notes to be issued now is similar in all respects to the Rs. 1,000 banknotes in Mahatma Gandhi series-2005, issued earlier, RBI said.
“All the banknotes in the denomination of ‘1,000 issued by the Bank in the past will continue to be legal tender.” Read more
Nabard cuts interest rates on refinance by 20-50 bps
To give a boost to investments in the agriculture sector, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) has reduced the rate of interest on their refinance facilities to banks by 20-50 basis points.
The new rates of interest on refinance will now be 9.30 per cent (9.50 per cent earlier) for five years, 9.50 per cent (9.70 per cent) for three-five years, and 9.50 per cent (10 per cent) for tenures between 18 months and three years.
Farm productivity
The new refinance rates are applicable from August 14. One basis point is equal to one-hundredth of a percentage point.
In addition to this rate cut, Nabard will also cut 50 basis points in interest rates for area development projects and innovative activities that enhance production and farm productivity. Read more
Andhra Bank CMD gets award
The Rotary Club of Coimbatore has conferred the Pride of Coimbatore Award on the Chairman and Managing Director of Andhra Bank CVR Rajendran for his contribution to the banking industry for over four decades.
Rajendran, a native of Devakottai, started his career as a clerk in Corporation Bank in the mid-70s. He served in various capacities across the country before being appointed to the helm at Andhra Bank.
He served as General Manager of Corporation Bank, Executive Director of Bank of Maharashtra and Non-Executive Director of the MCX Stock Exchange, before his present appointment as CMD of Andhra Bank. Read more
Modi effect: Oriental Bank pledges support for 'Swachh Bharat'
Hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed the need to transform India into a 'Swachh Bharat', Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) announced a new CSR initiative towards this end.
This public sector bank has earmarked Rs. 2 crore to construct 200-plus toilets for girls and boys in various government primary schools in villages under its CSR activities.
This activity will be undertaken by the 34 regional offices of the bank across the country, S L Bansal,Chairman and Managing Director, OBC, said on Friday. Read more
Modi launches Jan Dhan scheme to take banking services to the poor
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today launched the ‘Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana’ to help the poor open bank accounts which will come with the facility of a debit card and insurance cover of Rs. 1 lakh.
“We want to integrate the poorest of the poor with bank accounts with the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana,” he said in his maiden Independence Day address to the nation.
Observing that people have mobile phones but not bank accounts, Modi said the scheme will help in bringing the benefits of the formal banking system to them.
“Today there are crores of families who have mobile phones but no bank accounts. We have to change this. Economic development must benefit the poor and it should start from here,” he said. Read more
Centre bans campus recruitment of bank officers
The Centre has asked all public sector banks to desist from the practice of directly recruiting officers from campuses in view of court strictures.
A letter has been sent to the Chairman, State Bank of India (SBI) and chiefs of all public sector banks, including IDBI and SBI associates, as well as Indian Banks’ Association.
Dated August 4, the letter is signed by Manish Kumar, Under Secretary, Department of Financial Services, ‘with the approval of the Secretary’. Read more
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