Union Bank to set up UK banking subsidiary

Union Bank of India, the Mumbai-based public sector lender, plans to set up a banking subsidiary in Britain as part of plans to expand its international business.

“The bank already has a representative office in London. We want to upgrade our operations there. The subsidiary route is preferred over opening branches of the Indian entity,” M V Nair, chairman and managing director, told Business Standard.

The rules for opening a banking subsidiary for business expansion is simpler than that for opening branches of Indian entities, said a senior executive with a public sector bank.

Nair said plans for the proposed subsidiary are on the drawing board. The bank plans to approach the Reserve Bank of India for approval.

Punjab National Bank and ICICI Bank had also opted for the subsidiary route to establish and grow their presence in Britain. State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda and Bank of India have a branch network across the UK.

Union Bank has had a branch in Hong Kong for the past two years. It has outstanding advances of $664 million at March-end, compared with $257.35 million. Its operating profit rose to $12.92 million from $3 million a year ago.

Union Bank opened offices in Sydney (Australia) and Beijing (China) in 2009-10. It has offices in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates). RBI has given the nod to open branches in Antwerp (Belgium) and representative offices in Johannesburg (South Africa) and Toronto (Canada).