Ratnakar Bank plans rights issue within a year

Ratnakar Bank may plan a rights issue of shares within a year to fund its expansion and seek to list its shares within four years, its new managing director and chief executive Vishwavir Ahuja has said. Ahuja, who headed Bank of America’s Indian unit until September last year, recently took over the Kolhapur-based bank.

The bank plans to increase its focus on financial inclusion and has appointed a four-member committee that includes Vijay Mahajan, the chairman of microfinance firm Basix, to recommend a new strategic plan for the bank within a month, Ahuja said.

Ratnakar Bank, which has 87 branches mainly in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat and Goa, will increase its lending to small borrowers such as – small and marginal farmers, artisans and workers to up to half of all its loans, with the remaining amount going to existing borrowers like agriculture, traders and small businesses. It also aims to double the number of its customers to 1 million, he said. The bank, which had a capital of Rs 343 crore, aimed to spend money on acquiring new technology and upgrading branches, Ahuja said.