 |
| ........current account deficit is the main cause for rupee's depreciation. Fed's move to sqeeze liquidity has also added to the problem. The steps taken by RBI and Sebi will contain rupee movement, but are not a solution to contain CAD.......... |
The very purpose of VITALINFO is to provide a platform for wider dissemination of updated information related to and happening of events in and around RBI.
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Growth woes bigger than INR fall, RBI won't up rates:Gokarn
CPI cites conflict of interest in K M Birla's presence on RBI board
The Communist Party of India (CPI) has vowed to take up the issue of the continuation of Kumar Mangalam Birla on the board of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in Parliament saying it was a "conflict of interest" as his group firm is in the race for a new banking licence, but Aditya Birla Nuovo MD Dr Rakesh Jain told Business Standard: "There is absolutely no conflict of interest."..........
Centre-state relations in the world of financial policy
.......Unrealistic? Not at all. With individual states getting involved even in foreign policy matters, which, strictly speaking, are outside their constitutional ambit, can finance be far behind? Or rather, should finance be far behind? The undercurrent of tension involving the yet-to-be-passed Microfinance Bill 2012 exemplifies this: the Bill is effectively set to make RBI the regulator for microfinance and weaken the states’ hold over the sector..........
A silver lining
..........India will also grow slower than what was earlier expected, by 20 basis points. But the real pressure points are South Africa, Russia and Brazil; their growth forecasts for 2013 have been lowered by 80, 90 and 50 basis points, respectively. The situation is still grim, but are these signs that the worst is over in India?
Drastic step or careless move?
.............Biswa Swarup Misra, an economist and banking expert, blames the stakeholders of RRB for its poor performance. In 2007, Misra presented a paper on the performance of RRBs to the Reserve Bank of India. ‘RRBs could have done better had sponsor banks played a proactive role in guiding them and state governments provided conducive banking environment,’ says Misra.............
Put economics before politics: Adi Godrej tells govt on arresting rupee fall
......Seeking greater cooperation between the government and the RBI, Mr. Godrej said that even though the RBI was an independent body, it was imperative that it joins hands with the government when it comes to economic growth. "I know the RBI is an independent agency and not under government control. If we do not have good growth, we will have more problems," Mr. Godrej said.............
Read........
Read........
PM backs opening up FDI to boost rupee
.........An uptick in the economy is vital to fund ambitious welfare programmes like food security and to create a feel good ahead of the 2014 elections where voter discontent on job losses and a faltering economy may prove politically costly. Chidambaram spent the better part of Sunday and Monday discussing ways to check the rupee depreciation with the PM, RBI Governor D Subbarao and Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.
Necessary but insufficient
Recent measures by the Reserve Bank of India and the Securities and Exchange Board of India are being seen by observers as an attempt to reverse the inexorable decline of the rupee. Some of them see these measures as too little, too late. Others are more of the view that anything that can be done must be done; this is no time for squeamishness or purism. Admittedly, these moves - essentially attempts to impose limits on potentially speculative positions by banks and other market participants, which could reinforce the downward pressure - do appear to be rather skimpy................
4 Reasons to Let Rupee Be
..........In
recent days, we in India are seeing an array of authoritarian
responses. Sebi and RBI have clamped down on market activity on the
onshore exchange-traded currency derivatives. There are newspaper
reports that RBI is interfering with the freedom of speech of employees
of banks, trying to persuade participants to not take positions on the
rupee, and trying to interfere with onshore/ offshore arbitrage..................
Promoting non-payment
........Thanks to a special dispensation given by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), approximately Rs 93,000 crore of loans, which should have become NPAs, have remained restructured assets. So, some Rs 18,000 crore of borrowings by Air India and close to Rs 70,000 crore of borrowings of a few state electricity boards (SEBs) have been recast a second time; in addition, RBI allowed banks to restructure around R5,000 crore of unsecured loans to microfinance institutions, not a common practice. Typically, if bankers recast loans a second time, it has to be called an NPA; clearly, if the company hasn’t been able to revive the business the first time, the chances of it being able to do so the next time are relatively slim...........
Ivory Coast (Africa) to cash for silver–coins for marketing in India
It refers to the African country’s Ivory Coast issuing pure silver–coins of 25 gms with picture of Lord Ganesha at the face–value of rupees 8001. Commemorative coins minted at a German mint are to be marketed in India from Ganesh Chaturthi this year. Earlier this year, a private company of India issued high–priced gold–coins with photo of cricket–icon Sachin Tendulkar embossed, priced at rupees 34000 for ten–gms pure–gold coin, at a time when gold–prices are zooming to around rupees 28000 per gms at that time. The Reserve bank of India (RBI) and the Union Finance Ministry should take immediate steps to stop the sale of such profit–making gold–coins. Sale of gold and silver coins marketed by banks, private firms and even government–agencies like MMTC increases tremendously during the festive season. Gold and silver coins issued during the British regime are available in plenty as duplicates because of their popularity as auspicious and gift items even though fabrication of fake gold and silver coins is a crime. The Union government should take steps to counter the menace. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) can issue official 24–carrat gold in Rs 20000 denominations with weight of 5 gms. To minimise chances of duplication, these coins should be numbered. A guarantee–certificate bearing the number of the coin and security thread should be plastic–sealed with each coin mentioning weight and purity as attractive gift–items. The face value of coins can be increased after the value of gold in coin crosses seventy percent of the prevailing face value of the coin. Only the RBI should be authorised to issue round–shaped gold and silver coins to be easily available through all branches of public–sector banks and post–offices. Likewise pure silver coins of 10 gms can be issued in denomination of Rs 1000. The system will be net revenue earning for the Government because the suggested plastic–packed coins will never come in actual circulation. All these coins should be made conveniently available in plenty at all offices of the RBI and bank–branches throughout the country. These coins can also be issued to commemorate occasions. Once the RBI starts issuing gold and silver coins, sale of gold and silver by private establishments in form of coins can be banned. However, the sale of the metal may be allowed by banks and others in rectangular or square form.
- Madhu Agrawal (The Sentinel)
Ease norms to help SMEs, exports: Commerce Ministry to RBI
............In a letter to RBI Governor D Subbarao, Commerce Secretary S R Rao said, "We would ... request that RBI's special export credit refinance to support PCFC (packing credit in foreign currency) (and it) may be enhanced from 50 percent to 100 percent." The scheme, he said, should be liberalised "to the maximum extent possible through greater refinance margins. It should enhance the overall quantum of refinance available and bring in long term stability to this policy, so as to encourage better export finance planning by both the exporters and concerned banks."...............
RBI takes the wind out of NBFC’s sails: Imposes restrictions on private placement of debentures
............The guidelines seem to have startled the NBFCs. This is evident from the quantum of queries and clarifications raised by the industry resulting in issue of another notification clarifying some of the provisions of the guidelines by the RBI within five days of the issue of the guidelines..............
Panel to Help Banks Meet Basel Norms
The
government has formed a committee with representatives from India’s top
insurer and a few state-owned banks to suggest ways of raising long term
capital for local lenders to meet new international rules on capital
for banks. The mandate of the committee is to recommend steps to
raise perpetual or long-dated bonds which do not have any fixed
maturity, and will be issued by Indian banks in line with the new Basel
rules which kick in from 2014............
Read - ET
Read - ET
More banks opt for forensic audits
Mumbai: Once bitten, twice shy. That precisely explains why banks reeling under the weight of crushing bad loans are increasingly turning to forensic audit of company balance sheets. This is to check any misuse of the loaned amount as they are turning suspicious of the rising near-bankruptcy claims. EY, formerly known as Ernst & Young, said its fraud investigation team has received at least seven such requests from public sector banks in the last one year, much higher by any yardstick...........
IRDA bancassurance guidelines put on hold: Will the core issues be addressed?
.........RBI's financial stability report’s Chapter III - Financial Sector Regulation and Infrastructure raises several crucial questions on bancassurance model’s use of unfair and restrictive practices. Here are some important points raised in the report – ......
Irda chief doesn't favour banks acting as insurers' agents
...........His comments come in the backdrop of a recent demand by the Insurance Council that banks be allowed to sell the products of at least five insurance companies in place of the one company norm for each of the life and non-life segments. Banks sell insurance products acting as the agents of the respective insurance companies, which is called the bancassurance model............
Here’s why to have a healthy credit utilisation ratio
Today, having a credit card is not a question of luxury. It has somewhat seeped into our system and many a time comes handy in buying things, which are necessary, and in future turn necessary. Interestingly, the recent data presented by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) provides credence to the increasing perception that the acceptance of credit cards has improved...........
Faith of Indian mutual funds still intact in debt and gold
.......Bonds have been under pressure as the weak rupee, the narrowing differential with U.S. Treasuries and a high current account deficit are seen preventing the RBI from easing further after cutting rates by 75 basis points this year. However, fund managers say equities in the second half will remain too volatile to perform better than debt, given expectations for weak corporate earnings in an economy that grew at 5 percent in the year ended in March, the lowest in a decade............
UBS India giving pink-slips post-banking exit, 50 to lose jobs
...........On June 21, UBS India had decided to surrender its banking licence to the RBI after sitting over it since 2008, as part of the group's "capital light strategy" and to reposition the balance sheet, with a view to sharpen its focus on the core businesses in equities and corporate client solutions. According to sources, UBS started distributing letters of termination last Friday and is said to be offering a compensation package of one-month's pay for every year of service completed, which is the practice amongst investment bankers in the country. UBS India has just one branch in the country, based in the megapolis.............
State-run banks asked to submit plans to raise $25 billion
Mumbai: India’s state-run banks must decide this month on ways to raise more than Rs.1.5 trillion ($25 billion) by March 2018 to bolster risk buffers and meet new Basel III capital standards. “Banks have to look at options other than capital infusion by the government to meet the new Basel rules,” Rajiv Takru, secretary, department of financial services, said in an interview on Tuesday in New Delhi..............
PSU banks vie for financial inclusion in West Bengal
Till recently, financial inclusion was nothing more than an onerous, target-driven corporate social responsibility for banks. But these days, the once-unbanked people are now spoilt for choice with multiple bank accounts, inclusive of zero balance and free debit card facilities, at least in two districts of West Bengal, namely Cooch Behar and Horwah. The direct cash transfer of subsidy has led banks into a slug-fest, for acquiring new rural customers. The stake, Rs 3 lakh crore— the annual subsidy bill of the government --is big enough for banks to set tall targets to tap the smallest clients of the banking industry..............
PSU Bank recap: Rising NPAs defeat the purpose
.................The sharp rise in NPAs is scaring banks from direct lending. No amount of recapitalization will change this scenario, unless the economic scenario improves, which is unlikely to happen soon. Government is only going through the motions of recapitalizing the banks since the guidelines have to be met.
Jewellery makers, exporters to get regular gold supply
SURAT: Despite Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposing restrictions on banks for importing and supplying gold on consignment basis, the jewellery manufacturers and exporters in Gujarat will get their regular supply of gold. Metals and Mineral Trading Corporation of India (MMTC), an authorized central agency for import of gold, silver, platinum, palladium, rough diamonds and coloured stones, has decided to intervene on the issue of a regular supply of gold to exporters to boost the jewellery exports.................
Plastic money gains acceptance in rural India
...... "We aim to cover all the locations where we have branches. All our rural and semi-urban branches, barring a few that have started functioning recently, are offering credit cards to the bank's customers,"............
Bank hiring in 2014-15: No advantage for those who have cleared exams
......“Vacancies for 2014-15 are to be filled through subsequent rounds of common exams and interviews. Notification for POs/MTS-III has already been issued. The existing candidates, if qualified under PO-II or the clerical common written exams, will not be considered for recruitment for vacancies under 2014-15. They will have to write the exams again subject to eligibility,’’........
Maybank commences Mumbai operations
KUALA LUMPUR: Maybank’s overseas unit Bank Internasional Indonesia (BII) on Wednesday commenced its Mumbai branch operations in India to tap the Indian and Asen market. In a statement, Maybank said both the central banks of India and Indonesia namely Reserve Bank of India and Bank Indonesia have approved the operations of BII Mumbai..........
What Makes a Good Bank Board? Lessons from the YES Feud
............So what lessons does the YES Bank feud hold for the new aspirants? “The new players will need to ensure that the highest standards of corporate governance are established,” says Roy. “The separation of professional management from owners and rent-seekers is better envisaged than achieved. At the risk of oversimplification, I would say that the right set of motivations are required to influence people’s behavior so that they act with the best of intentions and participate in decisions objectively.”
J&K fails to get any help from PCI on recapitalization of Coop banks
......However, there was no positive response from the Planning Commission, sources said, adding “what to talk of giving any financial assistance the Planning Commission even didn’t give any assurance to help the State in clearing the liabilities”. Stating that State has been caught in a peculiar situation following denial of any relief by the Planning Commission, sources said, “now the Cooperative Department has been left with no other option but to place a proposal before the State Cabinet for sanctioning of at least Rs 100 crore in order to liquidate part of liabilities and meet the condition set by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)”. Disclosing that RBI has set a deadline of July 15 for liquidation of Rs 100 crore liabilities by the three ailing Cooperative Banks, sources said, “if the Government meets this condition of RBI the latter will consider extension in the time-frame for obtaining license to work as banks”............
Consumer forum asks ICICI to pay Rs 28 lakh
The UT States Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum directed the ICICI Bank Ltd to refund to two residents an amount of 26 lakh along with a compensation of Rs 2 lakh for mental agony and physical harassment and cost of litigation to the tune of Rs 25,000...........
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Looking at some of the Reserve Bank of India's goals and aspirations : Duvvuri Subbarao
LOBBYING OR REPORTING?
 |
| ................“When you are talking to your source, he/she is giving you a point of view from inside, that may or may not end up being correct. In this particular case, there are only three names that are doing the rounds. However, we chose to highlight Chaudhuri because we learnt that he has strong chances of making it as the head of the country’s central bank”. Bhattacharya doesn’t deny the fact that lobbying can happen and names can be thrown up by sources keeping in mind their personal interests. He says, “There are times when some sources plant names just to scuttle someone else’s chances. And if the reporter goes blindly to his source without any understanding of the issue he is reporting on, chances are he could be taken for a ride”........ |
Banking on a Vision
PREACH, DON’T PRACTICE
One
of the hot subjects that top officials at the Reserve Bank of India
talked about after the credit crisis was the approach to policy-making.
‘Counter-cyclical’ measures were the talk of town, at least on Mint
Street, meaning that create a buffer in good times so that you weather
the bad times. Currency traders now wonder whether it was only meant for
preaching and not practice! When the global market was awash with US
dollars, RBI imposed so many restrictions on debt-raising overseas. Now,
it is busy liberalising ECB norms. The irony is that there is hardly
anyone willing to buy Indian paper.
ET
ET
Closure of RBI Public Counters - AIRBEA letter
............It is, therefore, clear that what RBI is
doing at the ground level and what it says in public including to the
Government, who in simple belief, are informing the same to the country’s
important Parliamentarians and peoples’ representatives, are quite at variance.
Clearly, RBI have a pre-set time table to close its services and RBI offices
are being forced to implement that, no matter whether the public receive
service elsewhere as assured. We request you to please
look into the matter urgently............
RBI sets eyes on non-bank lenders
...........Some local market participants, however, see the RBI's recent interest in this alternative financial system as part of an ongoing effort to clean up the country's financial sector and prevent the growth of a less-regulated shadow banking system. That fits with recent regulatory actions against financial companies such as Sahara India. "It could be the case that the RBI has concerns about fundraising by NBFCs from the public at large under the private placement route, and the case of Sahara India as well as the chit fund cases in West Bengal are likely to have contributed to the RBI initiating these changes"............
Who Will Make It to The High St of Finance?
..........
For the successful applicants, it is also worth remembering that an
amendment to the Banking Regulation Act empowers the RBI to inspect the
accounts and business of any associate enterprise of the applicant bank
and also to supersede the board for up to 12 months. For those that have
missed the boat, the wait for the next opportunity is uncertain as the
RBI has given no indication as to when it will reopen the next window
for applications. The RBI has now made its decisions. It is now up to
successful applicants to develop business plans and identify key bankers
as they have only 18 months to implement their plans after getting
their in-principle approval.
Read - ET
Communist Party voices concern over Birla's role at RBI
.....Communist Party of India (CPI) Tuesday expressed concern over the continuation of Kumar Mangalam Birla on the board of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), saying it was a "conflict of interest" as his group firm is in the race for a new banking licence..............
Perverse incentive structures in banks under RBI scanner
RBI has warned banks that it is taking a closer look at the ‘perverse incentive structures’ that are leading to ‘widespread mis-selling’ of third party products such as insurance to account holders..........
Arundhati Bhattacharya set to become State Bank of India MD
..............Bhattacharya will become the first woman managing director of the bank. She is seen as a strong contender to become chairperson of the bank when Pratip Chaudhuri retires in end-September. To become eligible as chairman of SBI, a candidate needs to have two years of residual service. Among the present, none meets the criterion, as three will retire by April next year and one in November 2014....................
My View on "Govt proposes to fix tenure of PSU chiefs"
Fixing tenure for PSU CEOs is a good move but certainly not good if the applicant is close to his retirement in the normal course by two years. The CEOs should have basic interest in the growth of the company optimally in a competitive environment. It is desirable to pick up CEOs in the age group of 45-50. The tenure should be such that they are given chance to understand the firm and compete and therefore should be for a period of five years. Second, selection of directors has become a farce in most PSUs and PSBs as it must have been felt that anyway their role will be minimal! If the norm of CEO selection at 45-50 is accepted it would leave enough scope to pick up the directors from an experienced pool of efficient ex-CEOs who will have scope to contribute significantly for the growth of the PSUs. This should apply even to the PSBs and the Insurance Companies in the Government fold.
- Yerram Raju
My View on "Personalization of banking: Woes of bank customers..."
The article is a true reflection of the sufferings of senior citizens. Technologies have not lessened the crowds at the counters, for several senior citizens still cannot access them and it is imprudent for the sophisticated banker to expect them to go to netbanking and resolve their problems. While it may be difficult at the present juncture for the banks to earmark either a clerk or officer dedicated to the service of senior citizens in the context of either paucity of staff or to realise their profit goal, the easiest thing is to open exclusive counter for limited hours displayed and notified by mail to all the senior citizen account holders to transact their business. Most ATMs exactly behave the way the author described. Banks seem to care little. The Banks must keep at least 500 and 100 denomination notes for all drawals of less than Rs.5000 per day until the merchandise accept debit cards for any and all transactions even for buying a cup of coffee from the restaurants as in the west.
Fixed deposits earning you negative returns
Holders of fixed deposits have been earning a negative return in real terms for most of the preceding five years, thanks to inflation outstripping interest rates. To make matters worse, depositors continue to be taxed on this nominal income. Although bank fixed deposits have never been tax friendly, the level of compliance has been sketchy. But compliance is slowly getting stricter. In the past, RBI norms required banks to take into account deposits in one branch for the purpose of tax deduction at source—a rule which allowed depositors to break up FDs across branches to avoid TDS. .........
RBI asks banks to open Aadhaar linked accounts, appoint Complaint Redressal Officer
.........The RBI has told banks that besides opening accounts they should also be seeding Aadhaar number. RBI said that it recently met with Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), finance secretaries of select States, where officials emphasized that banks should proactively take steps to open a large number of bank accounts, seed these accounts with Aadhaar numbers and view it as a sustainable & scaleable business opportunity. During the meeting UIDAI also spoke about utilizing the services of LPG distributors for opening of bank accounts and seeding Aadhaar numbers in bank accounts.......
It’s Time PSU Banks Woke Up to The New Normal
...........There
is a transformation which is happening in the Indian banking scene
where state-run companies dominate three-fourths of the market. That is
the best part of the story. The disturbing factor is that barring State
Bank of India, all other state-run banks are staring at a low-cost
funding crunch that could change the banking landscape forever...........
Read - ET
Banks tighten noose: To ‘name and shame’ guarantors for loan defaulters
..........Interestingly, public sector banks are at the forefront of taking such measures and those already making public the photographs and other details of loan defaulters include the country’s biggest lender SBI and UCO Bank, Allahabad Bank, Indian Bank and Indian Overseas Bank................
Overtime at North Block
The volatile rupee and high current account deficit have resulted in a return to working weekends for some senior finance ministry officials and staff. Finance Minister P Chidambaram has started attending the office on weekends, including last Saturday and Sunday when he called a meeting to discuss the rupee......
Currency derivative clampdown: Will it really help rupee?
...........The steps that have been taken are actually in the currency Futures market, not in the larger over-the-counter (OTC) market. Traders have been saying that the RBI, by moral suasion, has made the banks compulsorily reduce their positions in OTC. However, on the currency Futures market, it has come with Sebi-imposed rules............
Use Modi to Manage Rupee
..........Any
move by any non-BJP party that is likely to destabilise the government
would immediately be damned as a move to help Modi. So scared is the
Samajwadi Party of such stigma thus that it suffers Beni Prasad Verma’s
insults in silence and dare not withdraw support for the government. The
logic works for other parties as well. This stability gives the
government space for new policy manoeuvre. It is time to be bold and
take tough decisions to revive India’s growth, strengthen macroeconomic
balance and stem the rupee’s slide.................
RBI may ask oil firms to buy dollar from single bank
...........Following the suggestion, RBI had met officials of Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation in Mumbai on Monday. “In our presentation, we had made various suggestions, including a special window for OMCs to access dollars at market rates and also buying it from a single bank. However, no written directive has come from RBI,”.........
Rupee at 60: Here’s why India is a steal for foreigners right now
.........I believe that 60 is the number where there could be a clear psychological turning point for the rupee as it is 30-35 percent lower than where the currency was in 2010-11. Despite inflation, despite policy paralysis, despite economic mismanagement, the rupee may be about to find it feet. If the rupee stabilises, the government will claim it was its efforts that did the trick. Don’t believe it. The rupee does not dance to P Chidambaram’s tunes. It is on its own trip based on more fundamental fundamentals and right now it could well believe that it has arrived. It is the dollar that should be a sell for Indians from now on..............
It’s time to pull out all the stops
.......Having crossed 61 to a dollar, the debate now is veering around the next psychological barrier — a scary 65. More than the number, it’s the rupee’s sharp and unhindered slide that is causing unease. If the country’s top economy and currency administrators have gone into a huddle in recent days, it is only symptomatic of the anxiety gripping India’s macroeconomic managers...............
Sliding Re Forces Rulebook Change
.....The
Reserve Bank of India banned banks from indulging in proprietary
trading in currency derivatives, which took the pressure off the
currency, and the Securities & Exchange Board of India raised margin
requirements for non-bank traders in a notification issued late on
Monday evening. Further, state-run oil firms have accepted RBI’s
proposal to bid for US dollars through just one bank on a given day
instead of multiple bids that magnified dollar demand and led to many
banks building up positions, said people familiar with the development........
Hard to stop the slide
RBI reviewing guidelines on mis-selling by banks in wealth management services
............The Financial Stability Report released by RBI has taken note of mis-selling in the wealth management division of banks. An issue which has been constantly been highlighted by Moneylife, needs to curbed with many checks and disclosures in place. Taking serious note of the mis-selling that occurs in wealth management and investment advisory services offered by banks, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s Financial Stability Report released on 27 June 2013 says that it is in the process of reviewing its guidelines...........
Commerce Ministry seeks liberalised packing credit scheme from RBI
...“We would ... request that RBI’s special export credit refinance to support PCFC (packing credit in foreign currency) (and it) may be enhanced from 50 per cent to 100 per cent,” Commerce Secretary S R Rao said in a letter to RBI Governor D Subbarao...........
What will you do if taxman knocks at your door?
Any communication from I-T department and especially receiving a notice can send shivers down your spine, even though it might be a routine enquiry or a simple clarification sought. Notice can be issued for varied reasons and there is no standard single solution to deal with different notices in the same way, but you can surely follow these 12 golden steps as mentioned below in response to any kind of notice you may receive: Neither panic nor ignore: .............
Pension account after death of a pensioner – RBI Instructions
.....In this connection, we advise that in case the spouse (Family pensioner) opts for existing joint account for credit of family pension, banks should not insist on opening of a new account when the spouse is the survivor and having a joint account with the pensioner and in whose favour an authorization of payment of family pension exists in the Pension Payment Order (PPO)..........
Deem grant of education loans as service to society, banks told
.........Noting that banks acted as a bridge between students and their ambitions for better education, the District Collector said banks should do their best to resolve quickly complaints regarding the disbursal of education loans. She said that special consideration should be given to make the process of granting education loans easy. “Disbursal of scholarships, welfare pensions, and other benefits through bank accounts should be accelerated,” Ms. Latha said. “The banks should create awareness among the public to not depend on private financiers for financial aid,” V. Raveendran, Assistant General Manager, Reserve Bank of India, said in his address............
Fair & Lovely Mutual Funds
......What about consumers? Why don’t they protest? Well, because these nicely perfumed gels and lotions may not make you fairer, but they are harmless; they moisturise and they allow people to live in hope. In other words, the consumer is a willing sucker in this case and there is little harm done. Can mutual funds (MFs) try to sell their schemes like fair & lovely? MFs have an obligation to perform. If an MF scheme, over a period of time, gives you low or negative returns, it hurts your financial future. It is not harmless......
Sebi to ask Subrata Roy led Sahara about unverified investors
.....However, a pilot verification project undertaken by Sebi found that a vast majority of these investors were not traceable, the market regulator said in a status report presented before its board late last month. "These cases will be referred to Saharas in due course, for their explanation/clarification," Sebi informed its board.................
Fanbox mail scam: Watch out for automatic debit from your bank, PayPal account
.............In future, if you get any spam or suspicious looking email claiming you have won something or have something unclaimed, it is best advised to filter and delete it right away. Moreover, never link your bank account or credit/debit card online to any third party, even if the site is credible. As for Fanbox, it is best you stay away from it, no matter what their claims are.
Microfinance Institutions Get a Boost From Development Funds
We
are here to write big cheques. We do not write small sums,” said Rajat
Sood, vice-president, General Atlantic, a PE fund, in a message to the
microfinance industry that’s attempting to limp back to life after the
SKS Microfinance fiasco nearly killed the fledgling industry. Sood was
speaking at a seminar arranged by industry body Microfinance
Institutions Network (MFIN). Investors are showing some interest these
days after fleeing the sector en masse...........
Read - ET
Read - ET
TMB banks on public float for growth
......The bank's conservative holding, while ensuring that its financials remained robust, has come in the way of its expansion plans. It was denied permission by the Reserve Bank of India to open branches in the metro cities because of its legal trouble and lack of public equity. As a result, TMB has in recent years lost out to competition. .....
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Lobbying for the next RBI Governor
My View on "Arvind Mayaram, Raghuram Rajan in fray for RBI Gov..."
The choice between Raghuram Rajan and Arvind Mayaram is crystal clear.Apart for one thing in common, the word Ram(Random Access Memory or our Maryada Purush Ram), there is nothing common between the two. Rajan is privy to Global EcoSystem, has worldview like Ben Bernanke and full of innovative ideas. Arvind Mayaram is conservative (cannot be otherwise being an official from a hidebound bureaucracy which excels in precedences and looks to politicians of the day for guidance),familiar with Sikar, Barmer, Jhunjhunu, Jaipur etc; walks on dotted lines,risk averse and not known to chase predetermined fiscal targets in a time bound manner. The selection should be thrown open to a wide spectrum of players and not confined to a narrow pool of IAS.His main qualification is being touted as being from IAS, he will coordinate better with Ministries of Commerce,Foreign Trade and other organs of Government, manned solely by IAS. Is Ben Bernanke,who has move from fiscal stimulus to quantitative easing, a product of bureaucracy? No. He was a tenured Professor at Princeton University who applied latest economic tools to revive $15000 US economy.Why we cling to traditional monetary tools coupled with political nature subsidies to revive $1800 economy and still have the gall to say we are third biggest economy in the world.
Why our DGs are being trashed that they have no administrative skills e.g.Sinha, H.R.Khan,
- Sitendra Kumar
Applications invited for the post of Chairman, NABARD
Government appoints top PSU bank executives
The government on Monday made three top appointments for public sector financial firms. S K Jain has been appointed chairman and managing director (CMD) of Syndicate Bank, Rajiv Rishi as CMD of Central Bank of India and S B Mainak has been appointed as MD of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC)..........
Govt proposes to fix tenure of PSU chiefs
.......“In the absence of succession planning, highly competent officers in CPSEs (central public sector enterprises) are many times not left with two years or more of service when posts of functional directors/CMDs fall vacant. As a consequence, CPSEs lose the benefit of getting this pool of talent to occupy the deserving board level posts. Quite often, these competent executives lose their motivation while serving for rest of their tenures,”.............
ICICI Bank trains women staff in self-defence, ensures safe travel
MUMBAI, JULY 7: Security for working women remains a concern in most cities across the country. Taking serious note of this, the country’s largest private sector lender, ICICI Bank, has initiated additional assistance and support to its women employees after working hours. Last month, ICICI Bank implemented some measures for women by setting up a team to conduct self-defence training, monitoring their travel after working late and organising quick-reaction mobile vans to handle emergency situations. Women constitute about 25-30 per cent of the bank’s workforce. At present, ICICI Bank has 17,000 women employees, including probationary officers.........
My View on "Birla should quit RBI board for sake of legacy"
It is Mr Kumara Mangalam Birla who chaired the SEBI Committee on Corporate Governance. To uphold the good principles of good governance, he should have quit the RBI Board on the day he applied on behalf of his company for a license to open the Bank to the RBI. Even if the license were not to be granted, it would be wise to honorably quit the Board of RBI. The RBI on its part would do well not to send any Board papers to him just because he is still ornamenting the Board list.
- Yerram Raju
Women entrepreneurs may see a future with this bank
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............While male employees would also be hired for running the bank, but to make it empathetic to the needs and aspirations of its target customer base, it is expected to be headed by a woman. However, who will head the bank is still a unclear. Officials said that though a number of candidates — all of whom are women — have been identified, a final decision is yet to be taken and can be expected only after clearance from the Union Cabinet for the bank. However, don’t expect the bank to offer any concession rates to women customers. Finance ministry officials have said that it will function purely as a commercial bank and follow the RBI’s guidelines. Apart from regular banking facilities, it is also likely to tie up with state-owned financial institutions and offer pension and insurance products...........
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Unions oppose entry of new banks
..............“UFBU is of the opinion that public sector banks should be further strengthened and expanded to play their pioneering role to meet the present day challenges to our economy” statement added. “In the entire world, the mix up of business and banking had been an unsuccessful model” UFBU said in its resolution. “We are concerned that the Reserve Bank of India and the government are trying to hurry up the process of opening up the banking sector to all types of private interests including foreign direct investors” UFBU said. India today needs strengthening of the public sector banking with further social orientation, rather than encouraging the profit oriented private sector banking according to UFBU. It also called on the government revisit the policy of banking sector liberalisation...............
Bank on hope
The Reserve Bank of India is the mother of oligopolies. It loves government banks, knows that they are not much good at serving their customers, and has done its best to protect them from competition. But it is almost 10 years since it gave out the last bank licences. The common man may complain about lack of banks, but he hardly matters. But then, the prime minister, who once was governor of the RBI, ordained that the numerous subsidies that his government gives its chosen common man be paid in his bank account; it was then discovered that most common men had no bank branch within even driving distance. His government’s banks had counter clerks with children in good city schools; they did not want to go and serve the common man in fly-ridden villages.............
Personalization of banking: Woes of bank customers
Though the banks claim to be taking particular care of senior citizens, the ground reality conditions are far different
.........The other perennial problem faced by senior citizens is the lack of uniformity in the tedious issue of Tax Deductions at Source/TDS on the interest credits. The branches ought to hand over the “No tax deduction request” forms religiously in March each year to make them effective from the following accounting year essentially for monthly credits from April onwards. The declarations should be collected and earmarked. The gross interest earned has to be first credited and the tax deducted debited at the same time..........
LawMin to decide whether Aadhaar's e-KYC is valid
.....Several months after it was launched with much fanfare, the ambitious plan of the Unique Identification Authority of India, or UIDAI, to substitute physical verification with electronic know your customer (KYC) authentication as a means to provide government services, including opening bank accounts, is yet to take off. Reason: There are still doubts on the current legal sanctity of the proposal..............
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