FM tells OBC to apply for Lahore branch
| Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC), which was headquartered in Lahore before the Independence, may apply to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for opening a branch in Lahore. |
| "We will take a view soon on approaching RBI for opening a branch at Lahore," said OBC Executive Director A C A Peirera. |
| Speaking at a function organised by OBC today, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said: "I have urged the chairman and managing director of the bank to apply to RBI for opening a branch at Lahore. Let's see how the government of Pakistan responds." |
| Chidambaram said it was unfortunate that the bank did not have a branch at Lahore, where it was set up in 1943. |
| OBC expects business (deposits and advances) to grow to Rs 1,30,000 crore by March 31, 2008. It has set a target of achieving the total business of Rs 2,00,000 crore and a net profit of over Rs 1,500 crore by 2010. |
| Peirera said the bank would review both deposit and lending rates in April. |
| The bank added it would review interest rates, including consumer and home loan rates, within 10 days. "The Asset Liability Committee (ALCO) of the bank will meet within the next 10 days, following which we will take a view on the interest rates," Oriental Bank of Commerce Chairman and Managing Director A K Misra added. |
| Agencies add OBC said it expected 2007-08 loans and deposits to grow 21 per cent from a year ago, slower than the last year, its chairman said on Monday. |
| In 2006-07, deposits grew 27.5 per cent and loans grew 31.5 per cent. |
| "Next year, we want to step it up further," Alok Misra told reporters on the sidelines of a news conference. |
| Misra added the bank would take a decision on interest rates in the next 10 days, but said he saw them stable "for sometime." |
| He declined to comment on the financal performance for 2007-08, which has been muted. |
| "(Financial year) 2008-09 will be a good year," he said, due to reduced cost of deposits and an increase in the number ofaccounts. |
| The bank has had 1.6 million new accounts in this financial yearand hopes to double that figure next year, Misra said. |
| It will also add 64 new branches to its network of 1,323 branches by June and open a representative office in Dubai. |
| The bank may revise deposits and lending rates depending on the cost of the fund, he said. Currently, the prime lending rate of the bank stands at 13.25 per cent. During the current financial year, the bank is likely to see deposit and credit growth of about 21 per cent, he said. |
| Talking about the outlook for FY09, Misra said next year would be good as the bank has opened 1.6 million no frill accounts and cost of fund is likely to be moderate. Besides technology initiative taken by the bank would also drive growth, he added. OBC has become the fourth public sector bank to link all 1,323 branches and 79 extension counters to core banking solution. |
| Besides, the bank also launched online education loan facility, e-shopping and OBC Direct in collaboration with IDBI Capital. Misra said the bank would open about 64 new branches during the year. |
| In a bid to establish a toe-hold in the overseas market, OBC will also set up a representative office in Dubai during the year. The bank already has got RBI approval and are seeking regulatory permission from the UAE authorities for opening the office. |