Will Subbarao oblige Mukherjee?

...... Two questions are relevant. First, when should the repo rate be reduced? And second, what should be the extent of reduction in the repo rate? Going by the experience of 2008-09 when the economy was in a similar position, a quick reversal of GDP growth became possible because the repo rate was reduced from 9 percent to 4.75 percent in just a few months. The RBI has to move that fast now to get the economy back on the rails to achieve 7.6 percent growth. But will Mr Duvvuri Subbarao oblige Mr Pranab Mukherjee? 

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RTI action makes 105 branches of leading banks become “customer-sensitive”

.....Commodore Batra sent an email to V.S.Das, Executive Director, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), stating, “I am writing this with urgent plea for RBI’s intervention to assure safety of assets of customers holding accounts and lockers in Noida. You may be aware that about 104 branches of various leading banks are operating in Noida from residential areas for decades now.........

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Customer needs & rules to drive banks' IT spend: Survey

.... The regulations and compliance norms — like Basel-II and -III, financial inclusion drive of RBI and IFRS convergence — will also drive PSBs to adopt new technologies. Some technological priorities at PSBs include data warehousing, BI and CRM. The IT landscape in banks has evolved since adoption of core banking solutions, aimed at automation of systems. The question of 'whether to adopt technology' has now transitioned to 'what new technologies to embrace', to achieve differentiation. Add to this the financial inclusion initiative, high on the agenda of the Reserve Bank of India, which aims to bring financial services to remote parts of the country.

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Five reasons why RBI will not cut interest rates soon

The Reserve Bank of India has limited headroom to cut key benchmark interest rates rapidly. To stimulate growth, RBI needs to cut repo rates sharply and reduce the cost of borrowing for all. Repo rate (currently at 8.5 per cent) is the rate at which banks borrow from RBI. Here are five reasons why RBI is unlikely to do that so soon:……..

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Banks likely to hold deposit rates till liquidity improves

.......... RBI is expected to cut policy rates on April 17 when the central bank announces the annual monetary and credit policy for 2012-13. While RBI said in its mid-term policy review that future actions will be towards monetary easing, it also pointed out that the timing and pace will depend on inflationary trends. Policy rate has been held at 8.5 per cent since October 2011 citing upward inflation risks.

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India's new growth paradigm: Faster growth with bigger deficit and higher inflation

........... It needs to be grasped that a high rate of inflation per se is not a problem. It is variability in the rate of inflation that is the problem as economic agents are then faced with uncertainty. The worry when inflation rate touches double digits is that policymakers have lost control over it, so it can shoot up even further. However, if the RBI can demonstrate that it can contain inflation at 6-7%, growth need not be derailed.

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Obituary

C.V.KALYANA SUBRAMANIAN (80yrs) West Mambalam. Ex-RBI passed away on 27.03.2012..Phone:044-24895329 

The Hindu

RBI relaxes norms on overseas direct investments

..... “To grant more flexibility to the Indian party, it has been decided to further liberalise various provisions or regulations of overseas direct investments…”......

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R. K Tandon - Reserve Bank of India - Exclusive Interview

......... I am indeed very happy & consider it as a privilege to participate on “World Consumer’s Day’. RBI has taken several initiatives in terms of reaching uncovered population to make financial inclusion..........


Watch the video............... 

Will pass on CRR cut benefit to SMEs: SBI

........ What are you expecting from the Reserve Bank of India after that March statement, which sounded a tad hawkish and subsequent developments on fiscal deficit and oil? We have seen people losing faith in that expected rate cut on April 17th. What are you expecting?......

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RBI to be lenient on debt-like FDI

The Reserve Bank of India has toned down objections to FDI instruments with alleged debt nature and agreed to allow them subject to certain conditions...............

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GAAR may change type of FIIs entering India: Deutsche Bank

...... There are two other issues to be worried about. One is what happens with inflation and what happens with the RBI. If fuel price decision is delayed all the way to June, we could probably see disinflation of 50-100 bps for the next few months and RBI could even go ahead and cut. That could actually even have a positive impact on the long end of the market. So I am not looking at 9% that's the bottomline........

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RBI cancels co-operative bank's licence

The Reserve Bank of India has cancelled the licence of The Bhusawal People's Co-operative Bank Ltd — the Jalgaon-based cooperative bank in Maharashtra, following depositors' concerns.............

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Airtel to tie-up with banks for cash withdrawal services

..... Under the latter service, Bharti’s retail or Airtel stores can act as banking correspondents, wherein a user can transfer money to another user, who can then go to its nearest such authorised shop to withdraw the cash........

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Surara border hamlet gets JK Bank branch on RBI Guv's promise

Jammu, Mar 27 (PTI) J&K Bank today opened a branch at Surara village located close to the Indo-Pak border in Samba district, within days of RBI Governor D Subbarao's assurance to provide banking facilities to the residents of the area. The bank today inaugurated a fully computerised Business Unit at Surara – a far flung village in Gagwal block of district Samba…………..

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RDHS exhibits various produces in RBI program

ITANAGAR, Mar 27: The Rural Development and Heritage Society (RDHS), Sangram participated in the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)-hosted financial outreach programme at Kimin under Papum Pare district yesterday. During the program, more than 34 SHGs and Lower Jhumi farmers’ club under RDHS exhibited their agriculture, sericulture and handicraft produces, dry flower making, door mats and traditional ornaments. Before the start of the main function, H R Khan, Deputy Governor, RBI and other top banking officials spoke on the credit linkage of banks to the SHGs and farmers and other related schemes. They also discussed the function of SHGs. In the main function, RBI Deputy Governor and Chairman APRB gave away sanction letter to six farmers on Kishan Credit Card.

http://www.echoofarunachal.com/?p=14643

1 lakh self-employment opportunities in the next 5-yr-Plan: Tuki

The state government has planned to create at least one lakh self-employment opportunities in the next Five Year Plan through 'Chief Minister's Transport Subsidy Scheme, Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Nabam Tuki said. While interacting with RBI deputy Governor H R Khan, who called on him late last evening here along with chief general manager SBI R K Garg, regional manager (Itanagar) B N Das and other officials, Tuki expressed his government's desire to coordinate with banks, especially SBI, to implement self-employment schemes for the educated unemployed youths..............

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Two sides of a tinkling coin story

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Saving a penny for the future is not only a wise man’s counsel but for the Reserve Bank of India also, on a different scale. But when the state is reeling under acute coin shortage, the RBI Regional Office here has created a record of sorts by holding Rs 29.04 crore worth of coins of various denominations as on December 1, 2011. In a startling disclosure, forced through the RTI filed at the Department of Currency Management, RBI Central Office, Mumbai, it has come to light that the RBI Regional Office has kept more than 80pc of the coin stocks under its custody from January-November, 2011. The information availed of by the Right to Information Protection Forum (RIPF) shows that though coins …………

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Shortage of coins hits Surat

........ According to an estimate, coin remittance of Rs 50 lakh takes place from RBI Ahmedabad to Surat in one installment. The only problem is, two such installments come in a year against the demand of Rs 1 core in a month. This problem is not faced in cities like Ahmedabad and Mumbai which have RBI branch………..

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Counterfeit currency from ATMs?

When such a currency note pops out at you from an ATM, you can do nothing about it. Take it back into the bank branch, the staff with write ‘FAKE’ or similar on it in thick marker ink, indelible, and you are on your way, poorer but not wiser. The RBI has to be much more proactive to stop the menace.................

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RuPay out to make debit cards safer

......NPCI's RuPay will be accepted at all 91,000 ATMs and over 6 lakh Point of Sale (PoS) terminals in the country. According to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data there are close to 27 crore debit cards in India. Public sector lenders Bank of India and Union Bank of India have already started issuing RuPay debit cards to customers and other banks are likely to do the same soon..........

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Avoid sharp variations on similar term deposits' rates: RBI

……"If it (the difference between retail and bulk deposit rates) varies too much, then there is something wrong," Reserve Bank Deputy Governor KC Chakrabarty said. He asked banks to discourage moves to offer sharply different rates on deposits with very little differences in maturities……….

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'Indian system not feasible for interest-free Islamic banking'

…"RBI has informed that in the current statutory and regulatory framework, it is not legally feasible for banks in India to undertake Islamic banking activities in India or for branches of Indian banks abroad to undertake Islamic banking outside India,"………

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Making priority sector lending work

……..The M V Nair Committee on priority sector lending has recommended “allowing non-tradable Priority Sector Lending Certificates (PSLCs) on pilot basis that can be only transacted between domestic scheduled commercial banks, foreign banks and RRB. ”. Furthermore it says “Based on the experience gained from the above-restricted pilot project, RBI may consider allowing use of the above instrument to all other market participants and putting in place architecture of tradability of these certificates.”…….

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From sugar to eggs: what our food basket says about our income

..... We know that per capita income is up. And we know anecdotally that food prices are soaring, but can we say the two are linked? And if yes, what parts of the food basket are seeing the biggest price push? Using data from two papers written by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Subir Gokarn,........

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Scam-hit MMCB gets another jolt: RBI warns it may cancel licence

........ In yet another jolt to the crisis-ridden Madhavpura Mercantile Cooperative Bank (MMCB), the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has threatened to cancel the licence of the bank. It issued a show-cause notice to the board of administration last week seeking clarification on why the bank's licence should not be cancelled………

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Cocktail FY13

.....Meanwhile, projections on interest rates and the money supply situation hint at another good year for fixed income asset classes. Estimates on policy rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India have already turned tepid, coming down to 150 basis points for the whole of 2012-13 from 250 basis points projected before the budget........

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Govt to play catch up on encryption norms

.....The policy entails increasing the encryption norms from 40 bits to 128 bits. Bits are used to define the level of coding of a message; the more the bits, the greater is the security of an online transaction or even an email. Entities including the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), commercial banks, insurance companies, service providers, and the Indian units of Microsoft Corp. and BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion Ltd (RIM)have already switched to a minimum encryption of 128 bits, said a high-ranking government official.......

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RBI to continue tight liquidity stance till inflation eases

NEW DELHI: The Reserve Bank today said its tight liquidity stance would continue as long as inflation is above its comfort level. "If inflation is high above the comfort level, RBI's general effort will be to keep the liquidity tight," RBI Deputy Governor KC Chakrabarty told reporters on the sidelines of SKOCH summit here………

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Govt to borrow Rs 3.79 lakh cr in Apr-Sep

....."We have budgeted fiscal deficit at Rs 5.13 lakh crore. In the first half gross borrowing will be Rs 3.79 lakh crore," Department of Economic Affairs Secretary R Gopalan told reporters here after a meeting to decide the borrowing calendar for the next fiscal. The meeting was attended by RBI Deputy Governor H R Khan and senior officials of the finance ministry........

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Will RBI’s Subbarao be forced to play villain in April?

The Reserve Bank of India’s job of managing inflation just gets tougher everyday. Overall prices in the economy show few signs of cooling; instead, everyday there’s news about something that will take prices even higher…………

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Emerging economies may see growth under pressure: Ajay Bagga

.... As expected, the RBI has kept all key policy rates unchanged in the recent monetary policy review. The central bank highlighted its inability to provide a clear monetary easing signal, noting persistence of inflation risks due to rising global crude oil price, weak domestic fiscal position and a vulnerable exchange rate. The RBI has been keen to cut rates since the January policy meeting, but with both global and local economic indicators bottoming out and inflation not easing sufficiently, its room for cutting rates has arguably shrunk…….

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SBI hikes fixed deposit rates by up to 1%

.... According to analysts, hike in fixed deposits rate of short-term maturities is mainly because of tight liquidity situation in the system. Tight liquidity situation in the system had forced banks to borrow over Rs 1.90 lakh crore from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) yesterday……..

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Mani urges banks to reduce interest rates

…..The meeting was attended by P K Mohanty, Additional Chief Secretary, Subrata Biswas, Principal Secretary, Planning & Economic Affairs Department, V P Joy, Principal Secretary, Finance Department, Sarada Muraleedharan, Executive Director, Kudumbashree, Suma Varma, Regional Director, Reserve Bank of India, K C Shashidhar, Chief General Manager, NABARD,…….

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Small ticket

.... Once the RBI initiates cuts in its repo rate, banks may opt to reduce the rates on their deposits first before lowering rates for borrowers. On the other hand, the new interest rates on small savings are applicable for the entire financial year from April 1. This – along with the possible diminished appetite for gold from the recent Budget imposts and also the huge 125 basis point reduction in the rate on statutory Employees Provident Fund deposits – may somewhat redeem the image of small savings schemes among those looking for safety and stability in returns.....

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HC seeks RBI views on silver bricks

Orissa High Court has issued notices to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) soliciting its views on a petition seeking to auction all the 522 silver bricks, worth over Rs 80 crore, retrieved from a mutt in Puri last year. Justice M M Das yesterday issued notices to RBI and fixed the next date of hearing of the case on April 30. The notice followed a petition filed by the Emar Mutt pleading the High Court to direct the RBI to auction sale the silver bricks and to keep the proceeds with the RBI until their ownership was decided…………….

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Gold loan firms to meet RBI over new lending norms

...............Gold loan NBFCs are upset about the RBI circular as it will put them at a further disadvantage compared with commercial banks. While banks can lend 140 per cent of the gold value, these NBFCs can now give loans only to the extent of 60 per cent...........

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Gold loan stocks tank as firms see slowdown ahead

.....“It is an indication that investors are gradually exiting the stocks after realizing the impact of the RBI regulations. Many global private equity investors and FIIs had a fancy for gold loans NBFCs and considered them safe. But the recent developments have instilled a fear of gold loans business going the microfinance way,” ........

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RBI to open branch at Itanagar

ITANAGAR, March 26 – Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will open a branch here soon. Addressing the participants at the financial outreach camp held at Kimin in Papum Pare district in Arunachal Pradesh today, RBI Deputy Governor H.R.Khan said steps would be taken for establishment of RBI branch at Itanagar soon while a State Bank of India (SBI) branch would be opened at Kimin within six months. This will be RBI’s fourth branch in North East after the proposed branches at Shillong and Agartala besides the existing one at Guwahati. Khan also announced that Arunachal Pradesh Rural Bank would be brought under core banking umbrella soon. Underlining the importance of widening banking facilities in all parts of the country, especially in North East to enhance the economy of the region, the RBI Deputy Governor informed that as part of its Platinum Jubilee celebration, RBI has conducted 21 outreach camps in different parts of North East including three in Arunachal Pradesh with an aim to sensitise public about various banking facilities and bring them under the fold of mainstream banking. He cautioned the people against frequent online lottery prize announcements that dupe innocent people and advised people to report such cases to police. Khan further highlighted various innovative schemes launched by banks including National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT) and mobile banking which is likely to pick up in next two-three years in the area.  Speaking on the ombudsman role of RBI, B.B.Sangma, the Banking Ombudsman informed the people that it serves as a Banking Lokpal and looks into various complaints of customers relating to banking practices including pension matters, interest rates and shortage of coins, etc. S Marandi, Regional Director, RBI, Guwahati, while welcoming the guests, informed that similar awareness camps in the Northeastern region are being organised to involve people from remote areas to banking practices and thereby to enhance their economic standard.

The Assam Tribune

Speculative innovation

Paul Volcker, former chairman of the US Federal Reserve, used to say the only worthwhile financial innovation in last 60 years is the automated teller machine (ATM). Reserve Bank of India’s Deputy Governor K C Chakrabarty recently quoted Volcker’s famous comment but added in his forthright style, “The ATM was the only innovation; others were only speculation.”

BS

RBI asks banks to locate 1.2 crore inoperative accounts: Government

....... "Keeping in view public interest, the RBI has advised all SCBs (scheduled commercial banks) to play a more pro-active role in finding the whereabouts of the account holders whose accounts have remained inoperative,".........

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No need for signature attestation for opening fixed deposits, lockers: Reserve Bank of India

..... The Reserve Bank on Monday asked banks not to insist on attestation of signatures of persons wanting to invest their funds in fixed deposits schemes or opening a bank locker......

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Payment gateway Rupay launched

...... Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Executive Director G. Padmanabhan said the central bank will not endorse banks to choose the RuPay network. “Banks can choose what they want, but if the costs are so low, then obviously they will save a lot,” he said.......

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Banks should cut transaction charge on debit cards: RBI

..... “We are saying that the debit card interchange fee should be lower because credit cards get paid after sometime, whereas in debit cards, there is an instantaneous debit into my account. Hence, logically debit cards charges should be lower,” said G Padmanabhan, Executive Director, RBI, who is in-charge of the payments and settlement system………

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Debit cards based on RuPay platform launched

.....State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, and Union Bank of India on Monday formally launched debit cards based on the indigenously developed RuPay payment platform........

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Bank bad loans a concern, effort on to fix it: DK Mittal, Financial Services Secretary

...........There are two type of financial inclusion- one on paper and other in reality. First, we have advised banks to close down dormant nofrill accounts, or to merge them to get a clear picture. Second, we hope that once the ultra small branches become operational, we will be able to resolve this issue. These branches will cost Rs 6,000 each month, which is recoverable easily if they do a business of Rs 5-7 lakh.........

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To fix BPL, nix CPL

One Tendulkar makes the big scores. The other wrecks the averages. The Planning Commission clearly prefers Suresh to Sachin. Using Professor Tendulkar's methodology, it declares that there's been another massive fall in poverty.............

TRead - he Hindu

Beware of fake currency, say police

Coimbatore City Police have asked the public to be cautious as counterfeit currency notes are in circulation. The police said that in the recent past two incidents had come to their notice. In the first incident, a railway employee was found in possession of 15 counterfeit currency notes of Rs. 1,000 denominations, which came to light when he went to a bank to send money to his relatives. In the second incident, a car owner who tried to pay for fuel was found tendering a counterfeit Rs. 1,000 note. Enquiries with the car owner revealed that he got the note from an ATM in Kerala. The police asked public to be cautious while dealing in Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes and asked commercial establishment owners and employees to be aware of the safety features in currencies.

The Hindu

Banks need to narrow retail, bulk deposit disparity: RBI deputy

.... "If it (the difference between retail and bulk deposit rates) varies too much, then there is something wrong," said Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor K.C. Chakrabarty on the sidelines of a banking event........

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RBI prevails; bank branches with Rs 6 cr biz to be audited

The finance ministry and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have finally agreed that bank branches with advances of at least Rs 6 crore are to be audited. The ministry earlier wanted the threshold to be Rs 20 crore. RBI, however, wanted it to be Rs 6 crore.............

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Fiscal deficit estimates are unconvincing

....even though the budget estimate assumes zero net Ways and Means Advances (WMA) from the RBI, in the event of continuation of tight liquidity conditions, the recourse to WMA is inevitable. This development would further aggravate the problems of monetary management. With such fiscal pressure, there is no manoeuvrability left with the RBI for a policy (repo) rate reduction. ........

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Relief and shield for small savers

Rates still lower than banks’ but one-year guarantee to come in handy

........The decision to align the small savings rates to the comparable gilt rates was taken on the basis of the report submitted by the Shyamala Gopinath committee last June after a comprehensive review of the national small savings fund.......

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Reserve Bank tightens fair practices code for NBFCs

The Reserve Bank of India, on Monday, revamped the fair practices code (FPC) to be adopted by non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) while doing lending business.The guidelines covered general principles on adequate disclosures on the terms and conditions of a loan and also adopting a non-coercive recovery method............

Read - The Hindu

MFI sector will take years to recover: Philip Vassiliou

.... While the Bill has a number of shortcomings, it will at least establish the much-needed regulatory clarity and affirm the role of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as the regulator…….

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Bad loans are looking bigger because the business has not grown this fiscal

........ How do you see (former RBI deputy governor) Usha Thorat’s recommendations on NBFCs? Is the raising of core capital requirement to 12% from 7.5% a concern?

The raising of core capital by 4.5 percentage points may not be a concern for Shriram Transport Finance. It is the reduction of accounting NPAs to 90 days from 180 days, which small borrowers will take time to adhere, who are not serviced by banks. It will take time for these borrowers to make this cultural shift to follow the 90 days (schedule) and, therefore, till then NBFCs’ books will carry larger NPAs and higher provisioning as a result.......

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Not sure if RBI will cut rates in Apr: Rangarajan

......“I’m not sure what will happen as it would depend on the inflation number for March. But during the course of the year, there is a possibility (of rate cut by RBI),”...............

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A rate cut is required now to boost small and medium units' growth: Rajat Madhok

...... Things are pretty tight at present. Not much capex creation is happening by SMEs. However, the past six months have shown some hope and we can see a reversal coming soon. RBI’s monetary tightening has played a major role in making credit availability tight, but with some indications of revival, we are hopeful of a rate cut now………

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Market to fall if RBI does not cut rates says BNP Paribas

....According to BNP Paribas, in case there is no rate action on 17 April, market reaction would be adverse. The RBI may come up with a guidance in the statement on rate cuts going forward, but that would not help market sentiments as the direction is not the question now, the question is about the extent of rate cuts.......

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Cash crunch in banking system intensifies

....The overnight borrowing signify the intense cash squeeze in the banking system now translated to about 3.4 per cent of the aggregate deposits or way above the RBI's comfort level of 1 per cent. The cash squeeze was partly on account of banks pushing credit ahead of the year end in order to build their asset books, bank officials said......

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RBI asks gold loan cos to comply with KYC norms

Tightening the regulations for gold loan companies further, the Reserve Bank of India has asked non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) engaged in the gold loan business to put in place board-approved policy to ensure that KYC (know your customer) guidelines are complied with and adequate due diligence is carried out before extending any loan. ................

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RBI mulls cashless payment options

SHILLONG, March 24: Considering cash transactions are still predominantly high in the country, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is driving ahead in implementing measures to promote the use of cashless payment options among people known as the modern payment settlement system which the RBI is operating. “The RBI has been in the forefront both as operator and facilitator for promoting the use of cashless payment instruments in the country,” Executive Director G Padmanabhan, who is also supervising the Department of Payment and Settlement System (PSS) said, adding, “The technology implementation in banks which have shaped the payment system in turn is largely driven by the recommendations of the various committees set up by RBI.” Chief General Manager in charge of the PSS Vijay Chugh said the workshop with the theme “Look Northeast” would enlighten stakeholders on enhancing the “financial inclusion to modern electronic payment system operated by RBI.” “In these two days we have been deliberating with stake holders on the modern electronic Payment Settlement System and other organization which is part of our vision created in turn contributed to capital namely the National Payments Commission of India (NPCI) to handle the retail payment at ground level,” Chugh said. “This bi-annual conference was held in Shillong so that we could get all the stakeholders of the North East including the government agencies to see that all products available to take the system forward, and to understand any other problems that the users and stakeholders find in the system,” Padmanabhan said.

http://www.sentinelassam.com/meghalaya/story.php?sec=2&subsec=8&id=111579&dtP=2012-03-25&ppr=1#111579

Task force to study issues

............Stating that it would be a huge challenge to make people shift from paper to electronic transactions, Padmanabhan said, “It is not going to be an easy task. For the last few years, we have been undertaking various outreach programmes to make people even in the remotest corners understand the benefits of banking.”....................

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RBI’s bid to tackle problem of fake notes

SHILLONG: In its bid to deal with the problem of counterfeit currency notes in the country, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is embarking upon a plan to create awareness among people about cashless transactions. This was stated by the RBI’s Executive Director G. Padmanabhan while participating in a workshop — Look Northeast-Stakeholders Enhancing financial inclusion through modern electronic payment system – here on Saturday. “The RBI has taken up the challenge to take people on the path of “cashless transaction.” Padmanabhan told newsmen after the workshop. He also pointed out that this would help controlling the fake currency note menace. The RBI has also liberalised norms for banking through mobile phones and electronic transfer of cash. According to Padmanabhan, the system has many advantages – it is faster as well as transparent. While removing the apprehensions that online transaction are not safe, he stated that the system is adequately protected” for transactions. “The RBI would never otherwise encourage people to go for this system. And the norms for consumer protection are clearly laid down,” he said. 

The Shillong Times

Sachin Tendulkar's centuries on currency notes

Pune: Fans all around the globe have patronised the ‘Little Centurion’ in different ways. And city’s Mayur Jain has found his own master stroke to salute the master blaster Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar’s rare feat of 100 tons. The book merchant from Raviwar Peth has a record collection of currency notes of Rs 10 denomination featuring the date of each and every century that Tendulkar has scored so far.............

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Govt mulls setting up dedicated cadre for financial services

...... financial services cadre of, say, 1,000 professionals could be set up and provided with intensive training and global experiences on financial markets. Its personnel could be posted in regulatory agencies such as SEBI, the RBI and also in, the Finance Ministry and rotated among these organisations, Mr R. Gopalan, Economic Affairs Secretary, suggested at a Future of Financial Markets (FOFM) event, organised by the Financial Technologies Group in the Capital.........

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BOB launches 1001 Ultra Small Branches under Financial Inclusion

UCO Bank opens First Ultra Small branch in Odisha

Online fraud: Even RBI not spared

Online scamsters, who earlier used the names of top companies or foreign banks, have now started sending out fake mails, supposedly from the Reserve Bank of India, claiming that the receiver has won 500,000 British pounds. To give a touch of “authenticity” to the fraud mail, the scamsters even have added the photograph of RBI Governor Dr D. Subbarao...........

Read - Deccan Chronicle

Govt may now opt for bond issuances of longer tenures

.... In response to the market borrowing target announced in the Budget, RBI deputy governor H R Khan had said the amount was higher than the current financial year and would be challenging for the central bank. He added RBI would deploy tools such as open market operations, cash reserve ratio and liquidity adjustment facility to manage liquidity conditions......

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RBI's move on rate cuts, oil prices to decide market direction: Pathik Gandotra, IDFC Securities

..... The next big trigger is when RBI starts cutting interest rates. It has almost been like 'Waiting for Godot'. I think what's going to happen is that if you read RBI's commentary just after the budget, they said they were happy with fiscal consolidation. If you read the commentary just before the budget, they had said that once they see signs of fiscal consolidation, they will cut rates. So, I think the next move will be that RBI will cut rates in April and that will be a push to interest rate sensitives. So the next move should be upwards...........

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Good shine, bad sign . . .

......Even as the government trying to quell the ‘yellow' fever, the Reserve Bank of India has applied brakes on non-banking finance companies, which survive by merely lending against gold. Such NBFCs have been asked to maintain a loan-to-value (LTV) ratio not exceeding 60 per cent for loans granted against the collateral of gold jewellery. Given the price volatility in gold, this move is welcome.......

Read - The Hindu

Budget: Who gained, who lost & who got forgotten : S.S.Tarapore

.....At an overall level, the Finance Minister has attempted to address the macroeconomic fallout of fiscal dominance with the greater claims by the government on resources, thereby leaving less flexibility to the Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) to undertake any softening of monetary policy........

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Budget has put the RBI in a spot

........The RBI has been repeatedly cautioning the Government that “credible fiscal consolidation will be an important factor in shaping the inflation outlook.” As the situation has not changed much, it will be too early for the Reserve Bank to take a realistic view on the policy rates in its April review. In fact, the Budget has put the Reserve Bank in a tight spot. The achievement of the twin objectives of monetary policy — economic growth and price stability, which includes financial stability — has been rendered an uphill task.

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WILL RBI BITE THE BULLET NEXT MONTH?

.................. In this complex scenario, it will be interesting to see whether RBI bites the bullet on 17 April when it announces the annual monetary policy for fiscal 2013, although the meaning of this phrase could be totally different for the central bank and the government at this juncture.

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High credit-deposit ratio, agri overdues worry bankers

Near double credit-deposit (CD) ratio, as compared to the Reserve Bank of India’s norm of 60 per cent, and the high overdues position in the agriculture sector in Andhra Pradesh have been the major concerns voiced by the bankers at the State-Level Bankers Committee (SLBC) meeting.................

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RBI, Finance Ministry to finalise market borrowing programme on March 27

The Finance Ministry and the Reserve Bank of India are likely to finalise the market borrowing programme for the first half of the next financial year on March 27…………

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Should you consider banks for a gold loan now?

.......Banks also take a relatively longer time to process a gold loan. This is generally because of the additional paper work and some times because of certain procedural delays and glitches at the back-end.

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Is Dhanlaxmi Bank headed the merger way?

..... "Old private sector banks are struggling to find their role in the economy. With the exception of one or two, the others are facing difficult times. The Reserve Bank of India does not micro-manage, but it will take a decision the day they see the depositors' interest being affected negatively.''........

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RBI to compensate banks for loss in N-E service

Shillong, March 23: Having prioritised to provide banking services to the people of North-East, the Reserve Bank of India had decided to compensate commercial banks for revenue loss in the process, RBI officials said today. “RBI will compensate 100 per cent revenue loss to banks for five years as an incentive to push banking inclusion in the region,” the Deputy General Manger of RBI, Mr T. Jamang, told PTI here on the sideline of an annual payment conference of RBI here............

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RBI to monitor banks' global books; SBI, ICICI, BoB among banks to face scrutiny

The Reserve Bank of India will send its officials to thoroughly inspect the fast growing overseas operations of Indian banks as they do for the local business to ensure that events outside the nation do not rock the domestic business…………………….

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RBI policy depends on new CPI, realty data

Hong Kong: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will watch the newly introduced consumer price index as well as property sector data for determining its stance on interest rates, a deputy governor of the RBI said on Friday. Speaking at an investor conference in Hong Kong, Subir Gokarn also said a low fiscal deficit would help in bringing down interest rates and boosting investments.  

Firstpost

Standard ratio

This refers to the RBI's directions to gold loan companies capping the loan-to-value ratio (LTV) for lending against gold at 60 per cent. The directions will not put the gold loan companies on a level playing ground with the commercial banks, in respect of which the RBI has not issued any directions for downsizing LTV, and whose cost of funds is much cheaper. While the imperative to contain concentration risk is understandable, it would be in the best interests of the sector if the RBI brought in standard LTV for all gold lenders, including commercial banks.

- Vijay Nair Trivandrum (HBL)

Higher interest rates may hit Rs 33k crore rural projects: Nabard

........ Nabard sanctions and releases funds to state governments for building rural roads, bridges, cold storages and irrigation facilities under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) scheme. Many state governments feel the RBI diktat is going to violate the loan agreement between the two parties. Nabard chairman Prakash Bakshi said he has written to both the government and RBI inviting their attention to this aspect………

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‘Time for RBI to cut interest rates’

The government expects inflation to stay around 6.5%-7% next year despite the possibility of an increase in oil prices. In an interview, economic secretary R Gopalan told TOI that it may be a good time for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to start cutting rates and do its bit in helping boost investment. Excerpts:……………

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Indian bank loans up 16.3 per cent y/y as on March 9, says RBI

Indian bank loans rose 16.3 percent from a year earlier as of two weeks to March 9, while deposits were up 13.8 percent, the Reserve Bank of India's weekly statistical supplement showed…………….

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Moving to loosen monetary policy: RBI

Hong Kong: The deputy governor of India's central bank said Friday the bank is moving toward a looser monetary policy, though the timing of any easing will depend on the state of the nation's economy………

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Rolling back rate cut expectations

...In this season of roll-backs, it’s interesting to see how quickly estimates for interest rate cuts next year are being rolled back. A few months ago economists were pencilling in cuts of 100-125 basis points, with some convinced the repo rate would hit 7% by March next year from the current 8.5%. But those calculations have been upset and, right now, no one’s willing to wager more than a 75 basis points pruning of the key policy rate with a few less hopeful: the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), they say, won’t be in a position to pare it by more than 50 basis points......................

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‘Identifying NPA will be key issue for CAs'

Kochi, March 23: Dr V. A. Joesph, Managing Director and CEO, South Indian Bank, inaugurated a seminar on bank audit, organised by ICAI, Ernakulam branch, here on Friday. Speaking on the occasion, he said a steady increase in rates of interest on deposits and advances during the year may see an increase in NPAs. Hence, identifying NPAs will be a key issue for chartered accountants undertaking statutory audit this year, he said. Dr Joseph also applauded the efforts of ICAI in convincing RBI to fix the criteria for audit of public sector banks branches having advances of Rs 6 crore and above. He also said the presence of auditors will bring in more professionalism in banks. 

HBL

Concept of inflation often misunderstood, says KC Chakrabarty

"...in the banking world, the concept of inflation is often misunderstood by people," Chakrabarty said at a lecture on Tuesday at Banaras Hindu University. "You would often hear this refrain from many persons that despite RBI claiming that inflation has come down in the recent past, the prices have not come down,"…….

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Rate outlook muted on inflation fears

......Core inflation has started falling and the budget arithmetic on how the government will manage its deficit seems credible, both of which will be important triggers for the RBI to start easing the rates when it unveils its annual policy on April 17.......

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Gold lenders lose shine on RBI curbs

Gold loan firms were hit badly after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) curbed mindless lending by non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) against gold........................

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SBSA flays RBI decision on business correspondents

.......The SBSA leader alleged that the RBI decision was a superfluous step which would lead to incorrigible frauds in the banking sector, besides inviting unhealthy competition among bankers. If the business correspondents were allowed to tie up with more than one bank, there would be laxity at all levels, he added........

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India’s adviser favours no intervention in forex market now

The Reserve Bank of India need not intervene in the forex market as of now to prop up a weakening rupee, the chief economic adviser in the finance ministry said on Friday. The partially convertible rupee ended at 51.17/18 to the dollar on Thursday, after touching the day’s low of 51.28, a level not seen since 16 January. The unit had closed at 50.66/67 on Wednesday. “This is not that place where I would recommend intervention,” Kaushik Basu said……

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End of the road for SUUTI, new AMC to hold all assets

……..Also, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had previously rejected the proposal to reduce margin requirement from the existing limit of 50 per cent. This would imply that half the assets of the new AMC would have to be kept free, which may cut loans to roughly Rs 15,000 crore. The ministry has since reportedly been in consultation with the RBI to relax rules regarding margins and interest rates. It is not clear if the central bank has agreed to any of these proposals………

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Financial services to be kept out of SAFTA talks: Government

The government has decided to exclude financial services from the SAARC agreement on trade in services, following strong objection from the Reserve Bank of India, or RBI. The central bank has argued that India has already allowed access to foreign banks under the World Trade Organization agreement…………..

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Foreign exchange reserves grow to $294.82 bn

India's foreign exchange reserves grew by $862 million to $294.82 billion on the back of a rise in the core foreign currency assets (FCAs) for the week ended March 16, the Reserve Bank of India said in a release……………..

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Financial inclusion needs version 2.0 : Puneet Chopra

The rapid expansion of business correspondents does not mask the cracks in the scheme

……One of the fundamental shifts needed by banks is to recognise and support BCs as a legitimate and full-service channel — an addition to branches, ATMs, kiosks, mobile and Internet channels. This would certainly be a winning proposition for all. All marginal customers can get doorstep (and perhaps superior) services; banks can decongest their branches, and focus on high net worth customers; while BCs would have a healthier business case. Bradesco Bank and Caixa Econômica Federal in Brazil (which, like India, follows a bank-led agent model) have adopted this approach with a great degree of success. Providing a balanced mix of financial products is another critical step needing to be taken and rapidly so……..

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Microfinance programme now has an economy-wide impact

….The paper finds that the typical microfinance programme, when made widely available, can have significant aggregate and distributional impacts, and that the general equilibrium (GE) effects through wages and interest rates are quantitatively important…….

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Greater Mumbai Co-op Bank unveils new logo



Symbolic identity

Mr S. Karuppasamy (right), RBI Executive Director, and Mr Narendrakumar Balota, chairman of the Greater Bombay Cooperative Bank, at a press conference to unveil the bank’s new logo in Mumbai on Thursday

Capital requirements for co-ops to jump manifold: RBI

….."Depending on the location and area...we are coming up (with the guidelines for cooperative banks). There will be liberal norms for setting up a bank in backward areas and slightly tougher norms in the banked areas," RBI Executive Director S Karuppasamy told reporters here. He said under the existing norms, a cooperative bank can be set up with a minimum capital of Rs 15 lakh, which will now be increased to Rs 50 lakh for banks in the backward areas and Rs 3 crore for urban areas which already have banking infrastructure. About the timeline for new guidelines, Karuppasamy said, "We are in the final stage... will come out with it shortly."……

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