Govt appointments -- where uncertainty is the only certainty

.....Subir Gokarn, the high profile economist who was handpicked by RBI Governor in 2009 to steer the country's monetary policy in an uncertain times, completed his three-year term on November 23. There were two certain options before the government. One, extending his tenure as he is eligible for extension, Two, terminating his service and appoint a new person. But the ministry choose the middle path. Neither did it terminate Gokarn's contract nor gave him an extension. The government decided for an interim extension, till December 31, just to add more speculation to one of the most crucial appointments of financial market regulation. Because Gokarn's re-appointment is not ruled out, technically, say the bureaucrats of Raisina Hill, where the finance ministry is housed, he can appear for the interview which will be conducted by the recently appointed search panel headed by Subbarao. Subbarao did the best he could do to avoid uncertainty regarding this crucial appointment as he strongly recommended Gokarn's extension around four months before November 23. This is neither the first time nor the last time that due to indecision of the government uncertainties over key appointments linger........

Read - BS

Is the RBI Being too Modest?

.....It is evident that RBI is following a very conservative practice of (a) not routing the unrealised gains through the Profit and Loss Account, and (b) creating a CR on the market value of assets instead of the cost price. As RBI transfers balance profit to the central government, these accounting practices are depriving the government of its share of surplus and building reserves much beyond stated needs.......

Read - ET

Mamata skips her date with RBI Governor

It may improve investors' sentiment but the parliament's decision to vote in favour of allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail may have cost the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) governor D Subbarao his date with West Bengal's flamboyant Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Subbarao, who is in Kolkata for the central bank's board meeting tomorrow, was scheduled to pay a courtesy visit to the chief minister. It has been a custom to meet the chief minister whenever a RBI governor visits a state. The calendar of top RBI executives lists one of Subbarao's today's engagements as "meeting with chief minister of West Bengal" at 5:30 PM in Writers' Building. The meeting was cancelled without the state government or RBI offering an explanation.........

Read - BS

Complaints linked to education loans see a drop in 2012

CHENNAI: If one goes by the statistics of the Reserve Bank of India, students are finding it easier to get education loans. S Ganesh, Banking Ombudsman, RBI, said there is a decrease in the number of complaints related to educational loans. RBI data show that the banking ombudsman received 569 educational loan complaints during 2011-12, 149 complaints lesser than the previous year. In 2009-10, the ombudsman got 980 such complaints. "If a student whose grievance against a bank is not resolved to his satisfaction by the bank within one month, he/ she can approach the banking ombudsman, if the complaint pertains to any of the matters specified in the banking ombudsman Scheme 2006," said Ganesh........

Read - TOI

IMF does a rethink on capital controls

....IMF continues to argue that gradual progress towards an eventually open capital account is still a worthwhile goal, but timing is the key. This comes very close to the position taken by the two committees headed by former Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor S.S.Tarapore, which argued that India needs to, for example, have a lower fiscal deficit, a stronger financial system and lower inflation before it can open the door wider to welcome inflows of foreign capital. Current policy is going in the other direction, which is a risky course of action.....

Read - Mint

My tribute to soft spoken gentleman.....

K.Ravindran - Ravi as he was fondly called by his friends, was a thorough gentleman,a gem of a person. He was there in CPC when I joined the bank and we were in touch till his retirement. It is so shocking and really difficult to believe that he is no more. May his soul rest in peace and God grants courage to his wife and daughter to bear his loss. 

S.R.Chawla

I am deeply shocked hearing the news of sad and sudden demise of Shri K Ravindran. I had the privilege to work under him in Mumbai. I had never seen him getting annoyed or shout at anybody even when he was hurt by the behaviour of the person on the other end. I learnt many things from him. He used to enjoy the most tedious items of work given to him without ever complaining or grumbling about them. This is a great human loss. May his kind soul rest in eternal peace. 

Harish

My View on "FM's pushing too hard....."

Government and the Bank (RBI) have different agenda- Former views everything from political angle-their prime concern is their vote bank. Whereas RBI is concerned with Economy of the country, stability in the financial sector and many more things as per the Act. When European Crises was at the peak and prior to that during the South Asian Crisis, it was RBI which insulated us, to a great extent, from the crises. This was acknowledged world over. Perhaps our politicians don't have faith in the Institution that is why slowly they are hitting on its autonomy, not consulting it and doing the things the way it suits them. God only can save us.

Ashok Kumar Bhargava

My View on "Ministerial attacks on regulatory authorities deplorable"

Statutory bodies like RBI should not be made subservient to the whims and fancies of officials in ministries for exercising the powers they are expected to exercise as part of their mandated functions. RBI has faced problems on such issues relating to banks earlier due to blurred clarity in powers and interpretation of law. Perhaps, RBI has learnt from the recent experiences while handling new generation private sector banks which did not survive and the interests of the clientele had to be protected by the regulator with GOI support. Last ten years or so, RBI has been loitering around North Block for permission to continue a pension updation granted by RBI in exercise of powers available under Reserve Bank of India Pension Regulations which is being questioned by finance ministry which has interpreted the pension regulations differently. An amendment to RBI Pension Regulations made to conform to the GOI interpretation of the regulations is pending with finance ministry for more than a year. Such experiences too, can put RBI on guard while acting on trust.

- M.G.Warrier

RBI warns of 'tough times' ahead

The top brass of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today said the government and the regulator's role in managing crisis is likely to be tested as "tough times" may continue for the Indian banking industry. "It will be tested over time," a top RBI official told bankers. RBI's top executives met bankers at a meeting organised by the Bankers' Club...........

Read - BS

Sluggish deposit growth means CRR cut’s on

....On an annualised basis, deposit growth has slowed down to 13.4% mid-November compared to 16.5% growth seen last year. Indranil Sen Gupta, economist with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, said deposit growth has begun to flounder at 13% levels with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) delaying primary liquidity......

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ABS IMPACT - Competition Commission Agrees to Look Into Charge of Cartelization by Banks for fixing 4% Interest on Saving Bank Deposits

....I feel contended that CCI has taken note of our concerns and ToI has reported that CCI is looking into this issue of cartelization by PS Banks.   However, I am sure to note that Reserve Bank of India is totally silent on this issue.  Inspite of fact that RBI is the top most regulator to the banks and has eminent, vocal statisticians like K C Chakrabarty (presently DG of RBI), who considers himself to be the biggest crusader of Financial Inclusion,  has never chided the CMDs of PS Banks on this issue.......

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Know Your Banking Rights

.....Customers dealing with banks should familiarise themselves with all the applicable rules and regulations as also the duty cast on the banks by RBI so that they can protect their rights more effectively.

Read - Moneylife

ICICI Bank launches online Flexible Recurring Deposit product “iWish”

.....ICICI Bank Limited, India's largest private sector bank, today announced the launch of an innovative online Flexible Recurring Deposit product called “iWish” for all its savings account customers. This product offers customers the flexibility to choose when and how much to save to meet their goals and, for the first time in India, share their goals on Facebook with friends and family who can choose to contribute to the goal.......

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HDFC Bank to hold national 'Blood Donation Drive' on December 7

......This is the sixth consecutive year that HDFC Bank has conducted this campaign. The Bank started this initiative in 2007 when over 4000 volunteers came forward for this cause. Since then the camp has grown in size and stature. In 2011, collection had jumped ten-fold to touch over 40,000 units from 4000 units in the first year. “It is heartening to know that with each passing year more and more people are eager to be a part of this life-saving campaign. This year the campaign is moving into colleges to create awareness and encourage our country’s youth to participate in this important drive........

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Bid to link ETFs & gold deposits

.....In an attempt to tide over the problem of ETFs purchasing physical gold, which is the underlying assets, the finance ministry, Sebi and RBI are considering transferring the metal generated through the deposit scheme to the funds. Officials privy to the discussions, however, said that a final discussion on the modalities is yet to be taken......

Read - TOI

Fighting the gold bug

....It is ironic that the RBI, which bought around 200 tonnes of gold in 2009 from the International Monetary Fund, is now worried about Indians’ preference for the yellow metal in physical form. At best it is offering only a band-aid solution and is treating the symptom of high gold demand rather than addressing the underlying factors behind the strong demand for gold......

Read - BS

Govt likely to infuse Rs 4,000 cr in SBI this fiscal

State Bank of India today said it is expecting around Rs 4,000 crore infusion from government this fiscal that will ramp up its capital base to over 13 percent. “I think the government will give us capital and it should be around Rs 4,000 crore. What mode it will be, is a matter that is being discussed,” Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer Diwakar Gupta said today.......

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No cartelisation in fixing saving deposit rates: SBI

......The nation's largest bank SBI today dismissed allegations of cartelisation by big banks in keeping savings deposit rate unchanged despite RBI deregulating this over a year ago. Disputing the charges, SBI Managing Director and Chief Financial officer Diwakar Gupta said the bank's decision not to raise interest rates on savings deposits is a purely commercial one and does not amount to cartelisation. "I said it is not cartelisation,"......

Read - IE

3 main reasons why SBI is not doing well

Chairman of SBI (State Bank of India), Pratip Chaudhuri after getting the coveted seat of the nation's largest lender, thought that problems would perhaps be fewer than what he faces right now. His predecessor, OP Bhatt was known for its bold moves sometimes, which Chaudhuri acknowledges, but it left the nation's largest lender with questions to answer with no immidiate solutions at hand. From the large pension liability to the home loan business going down, the man had to tackle some of tough problems at hand.........

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