PSU bank boards reasonably professional

...........In an interview to CNBC-TV18’s Latha Venkatesh and Sonia Shenoy, Chaudhuri said boards of PSU banks were reasonably professional as of now. On whether the recommendations of the PJ Nayak panel on governance of bank boards would be accepted, Chaudhuri said it would depend on the political leanings of the next government.

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All govt banks violate Sebi listing norms: PJ Nayak

............In an interaction with Business Standard – his first after submitting the report to the Reserve bank of India on Wednesday – Nayak said there was an urgent need to remove the discriminatory external shackles so that they could compete fairly with their private sector peers, one of them being the dual regulation of public sector banks............

Read | Business Standard

Critical vacancies in regulatory posts stare at the new govt

............Topping the list is the appointment of two deputy governors at the Reserve Bank of India. These will be the two successors to KC Chakrabarty and HR Khan. The deputy governors will, in turn, be members of the selection committees that will recruit public sector bank chairmen and executive directors. Around 12 such posts will come up till March 2015...........

Read | The Indian Express

The Manmohan decade

I was an employee of the RBI and Dr. Singh was the Governor for a brief period. In this role, he was simplicity personified, and anyone could meet him in his room. His car never sported a red beacon. He was always graceful and never harsh. It is unfortunate that he fell into the web of politics and became easy prey for politicians. He is free now but has retired hurt. 

- S. Venugopalan, Chennai

The Hindu

Forget firing, he is needed for fire fighting......

My View on  "Far from sacking him, Raghuram Rajan is the man th...": 

A well researched article. The penultimate para quoted here is significant. For those who may not read the full article, let me quote the concluding two paragraphs:

"However, there is one indisputable fact: far from thinking of replacing the RBI governor, the new government would do well to allow him the flexibility and freedom to keep a close watch on inflation so that any future reform measures do not lead to serious inflationary consequences.

Rajan knows this only too well, as he demonstrated last week when he said the government could fire him if it wanted but it was he as RBI governor who would set interest rates. A smart government will know that in this situation Rajan is one of the men the economy will depend on the most. Forget firing him, the government will need him for fire fighting. There are quite a few fires still to be fought." 

- M.G.Warrier

‘Motivated’ Media discussion

My View on  "Could RBI Governor Rajan Be Ousted By a New Govern...": 

It is not the lack of RBI’s allegiance to legislative supremacy of the government of the day that made Dr Rajan assert his eagerness to protect the mandated role(in deciding monetary policy) of RBI. The assertion of ‘ownership rights’ by lower level functionaries of GOI over all public sector organisations including statutory bodies like RBI and their interference in the legitimate functioning of institutions even in HR issues deny the top managements of these institutions a level playing field with their counterparts elsewhere. There is no point in sidetracking the issue of ‘political interference’. Even the present ‘motivated’ media discussion on continuance of present incumbent as Governor, post-16 May serves perhaps only one purpose. It gives an opportunity to those who are not generally RBI-watchers and to those who are really serious about understanding the ‘equation’ between RBI Governor and the finance ministry to ponder deeper. Suffice to say that the debate may not affect the continuity at Mint Road or more specifically the broad policy perspectives of RBI. 

- M.G.Warrier

RBL Bank appoints Rama Bijapurkar as independent director

............."Rama is well recognised as one of India's most respected thought leaders on market strategy...As we have embarked on an aggressive growth path with a keen eye on our consumer business, we look forward to her deep insights to aid our board decisions in achieving these goals," Vishwavir Ahuja, managing director and chief executive officer of RBL Bank, said in a statement................

Read | Business Standard

May 16 holiday plea

.......This must be one of the most unusual requests the Election Commission has received. A traders' body has asked the Commission to declare May 16 a national holiday so that people can watch live updates of the election results without the interruption of office work..........

Read | Business Standard

Painting for a cause

My Multi Talented Daughter Ms Priya Kumar has started painting for a cause. Proceeds of sales will go for Under Privileged Children.  Will you like to join hands with her by buying/promoting?

With Regards, 

Mrs.Sona Kumar, Ex-AM, Insp.Dept. Mumbai

(Ex-RBITES)

+9198201 95874

Sona Sarovar Trust - What began with just a bowl of water, is now a full fledged initiative to aid the underprivileged. Join hands to add your share of goodness to the world. To know more, click here

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Otta kaal anna finds pride of place here

..........He sells ‘otta kaal anna’ (coin with a hole in the centre), ‘oru anna’ (one anna), and five and ten paise coins, among others. Students, cinema production teams and coin collectors frequently approach him for purchasing the coins. “When I worked in a shop earlier, I would keep aside coins of different shapes. My interest in coins began then,” he says. The coins are priced according to their value, ranging between Rs. 3 and Rs. 1,000. He goes to various districts and States to collect the coins. “Most coins are found on river beds as there used to be a practice of dropping coins while bathing. I have found many coins in Thanjavur, Karaikudi, Mumbai and Kolkata,”.........

Read - The Hindu

India Post to re-apply under new guidelines: Fin Min

......"India Post was not considered under these guidelines due to the special nature of India Post," the finance ministry said. It said that on the issue of capitalisation of India Post no view has been taken by the finance ministry nor has the communication been sent to RBI.........

Read | Business Standard

FM to meet financial advisors today

.............As he is likely to resign on May 17 to make way for the next finance minister, the exercise would not have much repercussion. The new government might take a fresh look at the Budget Estimates (BE) for 2014-15 in the Budget to be presented in late June or early July...............

Read | Business Standard

Show me real money

..............Money is something we use to purchase something we want. It is issued and guaranteed by the government and the central bank (the RBI in our country). But what happens when unscrupulous people, for their own greed, produce money that is not real or issued by the government or RBI? Does it still hold the same value? Counterfeit money or fake currency is illegitimate currency and its actual value is much lower. Printing or even possessing fake currency notes is a punishable offence. So not only does it decrease the real value of money, but it also creates a situation where people are reluctant to accept currency of higher denominations. Even though, counterfeit money is being printed in large quantities, there are ways you can identify fake notes. .............

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Ponzi schemes out

This refers to the editorial "Probing Saradha" (May 13). If we have to plug the regulatory gaps in deposit schemes, we may consider vesting all residual responsibilities with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) that has the capacity to punish the wrongdoers. RBI can also have district-level sub offices where anybody can go to seek clarifications about such schemes. ........

Read | Business Standard

Why is SBI going easy on Kingfisher?

.....On Wednesday, DNA reported how officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation had to return empty-handed when it asked the country’s largest bank for details regarding loans given to the now-grounded Kingfisher Airlines . Sources told the newspaper SBI did not cooperate with officials from the investigative agency and reportedly said that “there was no fraud involved [in the Kingfisher case] and that it was simply a case of business failure”.

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RBI forbearance for three Andhra Pradesh MFIs

.......“We tried for a second round of restructuring. Since it was not approved by the RBI, we struck a deal with the banks for an alternative arrangement. Initially, it was difficult to convince some of the public sector banks in the consortium for additional funding. However, based on good portfolio performance of Share outside Andhra Pradesh, and long term plans on merger of Share and Asmitha, banks finally agreed to lend us,”...............

Read | Business Standard

Bandhan appoints Deloitte as management consultant

Leading micro finance institution Bandhan Financial Services, which has obtained banking licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in April, on Wednesday appointed Deloitte as its management consultant............

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Indian banking at crossroads - challenge of risk management from globalisation to financial inclusion : R.Gandhi

Valedictory address by Mr R Gandhi, Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, on the occasion of Seminar on Banking, organized by the Indian Merchant's Chamber, Mumbai, 8 May 2014

....... The Reserve Bank too has adopted a proactive and calibrated approach towards demanding and facilitating robust risk management efforts by the banks. Reserve Bank has been adopting a considered approach of limiting the systemic risk originating from both the pro-cyclicality as well as interconnectedness dimensions. For example, countercyclical measures were adopted as early as 2004 to stall heating up of certain specific sectors by increasing the risk weights and provisioning ratios for sensitive sectors such as capital market, housing, commercial real estate during the period when the boom was building up. Several measures were taken to reduce the inter-connectedness among banks on the one hand and between banks and NBFCs on the other, to address the cross-sectional dimension of systemic risk and regulatory limits have been placed on exposures to capital market exposures. Such.........

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50% Indians Without Bank Accounts Represents a Revolution of Demand: Dr Deepali Pant Joshi, RBI

.....“Fifty percent Indians still don’t have a bank account. How do you allow this 50% to be part of the economy? You thus have a revolution of demand. How will you ensure that they can avail of banking services? How will you use technology to reach out to them and at the same time give a better and more user friendly experience - that is the biggest challenge and opportunity facing the Indian banking industry,” said Dr Deepali Pant Joshi, Executive Director, Reserve Bank of India (RBI)...........

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RBI goes to school to spread financial literacy

.............RBI's Assistant General Manager Shailaja Singh highlighted the importance of passwords for online transactions and said passwords must be kept confidential. "People should not 'pass the (pass) word'," she said and added customers, instead of making verbal complaints about the deficiency of services of any bank, should write the complaint, get it duplicated, submit the same to the bank authorities concerned and get it 'received' on the duplicate. This documented proof of complaint would enable them to approach the RBI later, if need be. In his address, RBI's Bihar-Jharkhand Regional Director M K Verma dealt with a plethora of topics, including the recent RBI move to allow minors above the age of 10 years to open and operate savings bank accounts independently, if they so desired...............

Read - TOI