Citibank Plans To Set Up Amc

In an interview with Business Standard, Robert Eichfel, outgoing CEO of Citibank in India, said the bank's relationship with the regulatory authorities is on the mend and applications for more branches are now pending with the RBI. The new ventures will need substantial investment, most of which will come from retained earnings. The bank has not repatriated its profits for six years now. Citibank's capital base today is $300 million and it is expected to move up to $450 million over the next two or three years.

Eichfel is handing over charge to David Conner, CEO of Citibank, Singapore, who has been familiarising himself with the bank's operations in India during the last few weeks. Conner says he will continue with the policies set by his predecessor: mending fences with regulatory authorities, broadening the bank's target customer base to cover more mid-size local companies, expanding the consumer banking division and building the market share in each of its areas of operations. He sees India as one of the 18 countries critical for Citibank.

 

The bank has branches in only four cities now, but is confident that sophisticated technology will allow it to expand its operations and customer base in a substantial manner. Its telephone banking services now receive over 300,000 calls a month. Eichfel says technology has also allowed the company to speed up cheque clearances and disbursements in 500 locations around the country, though it has only a few branches.

Over the last few years, the bank has seen its consumer banking division overtake its corporate finance division in terms of both size and profitability.