Hdfc To Take 50% In Net Solutions Firm

Housing Dev-elopment Fin-ance Corpo-ration and HDFC Bank will together take a 50 per cent stake in e-commerce solutions pro-vider Net Savvy Solu-tions. The total stake is worth around Rs 2 crore.

The Chennai-based Net Savvy is promoted by California-based Solution Net International, a Nasdaq-listed company.

HDFC Bank is also launching an online electronic banking product provided by Solution Net, called ENet, which will allow corporates to access their accounts over the Internet and carry out trade-related transactions and cash management functions.

ENet creates an online link between corporate clients' back-office ERP/processing systems and the bank. It has been launched on the HDFC Bank website.

While Solution Net developed ENet, Net Savvy Solutions provides back-up support and helps implement the product.

Confirming the development, HDFC Bank managing director Aditya Puri said, "HDFC Bank clients will now have the bank on their desktops, giving them more power and information."

"ENet provides anywhere access for all corporates to their accounts," said H Srikrishnan, country head of operations at HDFC Bank.

HDFC Bank and HDFC had earlier tied up with Singapore Telecom subsidiary Sesami.net to provide business-to-business e-commerce solutions for corporates.

The new joint venture, Sesami.com, helps corporates to automate their purchase and sales departments.

"We are targeting large corporates, small and medium-scale enterprises and the broking segment _ the last by virtue of the fact that we are one of the largest clearing banks in the country," said Samir Bhatia, country head, corporate banking at HDFC Bank.

He said there had been an excellent response from corporates to the new product.