The National Housing Bank (NHB) plans to request the finance ministry to exempt reverse mortgage enabled annuity schemes (RMLEA) from income tax. The bank also asked the state governments&rsquo; guaranteed insurance schemes to expand RMLEA to people who are coming to government housing projects.

NHB seeks tax sop for reverse mortage scheme

Business Standard

The McGraw-Hill Companies is looking to ramp up its presence in the Indian financial and publishing space to increase the share of revenue from the country from the present level of 5 per cent, the group&rsquo;s Chairman, President &amp; CEO, Harold McGraw III, has said.

Financial services, publishing to be focus areas for McGraw-Hill

Public sector Central Bank of India expects to complete the buyback of its mortgage finance subsidiary, Centbank Home Finance, by the end of the current financial year.

Central Bank to buy out partners in mortgage subsidiary by month-end

The proposal was taken up in view of the problems faced by farmers because of repeated and prolonged power failures. The proposal is already been set into action and some villages are being converted into total solar villages to illuminate them, CKGB Chief Manager (Advances) K Gurumurthy has said.

Grameena Bank lends a hand to ease power shortage

SC had ordered a probe into mis-selling of contracts.

SC stays CBI probe into derivatives scam

Banks in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region saw their collective net profit dip by 8.56 per cent to $14.40 billion in 2009, says a report.

GCC banks' net down 8.5% to $14.4 bn in '09

Press Trust of India

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is planning to restructure its balance sheet through a programme which may involve buying back of around 10 billion pound of the British bank's debt, a media report said.

RBS mulls 10 bn pound debt buyback program: FT

Financial services major Barclays is understood to have preferred Swiss banking entity UBS for acquisition, a week before it bought the US assets of Lehman Brothers, says a media report.

Barclays eyed UBS as merger target before Lehman buy

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has asked banks to provide sector-wise details of their non-performing assets (NPAs) and exposures in the balance sheets from this fiscal.

RBI asks banks to give more info on NPAs

Country's largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), is likely to hit the market with its rights issue by the year-end to mop up around Rs 20,000-crore, a senior bank official said.

SBI rights issue could happen by December

State Bank of India (SBI) tops the list of the highest advance tax-payers while three other public sector entities -- LIC, IOC and Bank of Baroda, find themselves among the top-10 advance tax-payers list for this fiscal (FY10), an Income Tax source said.

SBI, RIL among top advance tax payers

Financial services firm Religare Enterprises today said it will set up its asset management, sales and distribution business in Japan and has hired a team from KBC Financial Products for the same.

Religare to enter Japan; awaits regulatory nod

Now it's any time money for the about 80 lakh account holders of co-operative banks in Gujarat. In a bid to widen its ATM reach for its customers, the Gujarat Urban Co-operative Banks Federation (GUCBF) is attempting to link up the state's 300-odd urban and 18 district cooperative banks with the ATM network of private and nationalised banks.

Gujarat co-operative banks to link up with private, PSU bank ATMs

Hindalco Industries, India&rsquo;s largest aluminium maker, has received a loan commitment of over Rs 10,000 crore from more than 10 banks for the Rs 4,900-crore debt the company plans to raise for its Utkal Alumina Refinery &mdash; a 1.5-million tonne per annum (mtpa) project in Orissa.

Banks commit over Rs 10,000 cr to Hindalco plant

Will get more powers after the Insurance Act is amended.

Irda forms six panels to revamp rules

Receding fears about sovereign debt defaults in Greece, Spain and Portugal and a positive outlook on India&rsquo;s economy have reduced credit default swap (CDS) spreads for Indian companies over the past few weeks. This will translate into lower borrowing costs.

Decline in CDS spreads may push up ECB volumes

The Hinduja group is looking to acquire KBL European Private Bankers, being sold by Belgium&rsquo;s KBC.

Hinduja makes $2-bn bid for  European bank

With the financial year coming to a close, commercial banks have hastened work on sprucing the health of balance sheets.

Banks try to clean books through settlements, NPA sales

Axis Asset Management Co, backed by India&rsquo;s third-largest non-state bank, plans to triple its assets over the next year as it aims to become one of the nation&rsquo;s top 10 money managers.

Axis AMC looks to triple assets in India

Deutsche Bank AG, Germany&rsquo;s biggest bank, paid euro 2.2 billion ($3 billion) in bonuses last year to employees who can conduct &ldquo;high-risk&rdquo; business.

Deutsche Bank paid 'risk takers' $3 bn in bonuses

The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) has upgraded the Hinduja Bank's licence, a move that will allow it to provide a whole range of financial services to clients in Europe, Middle East and South Asia.

Dubai allows Hindujas to offer full range of banking services

Finance News: Latest investing news and finance headlines straight from Business Standard.

Page 2700 - Finance News