Page 26 - Banking Sector

PNB fixes floor price of Rs 109.16 per share for its share sale via QIP

State-owned Punjab National Bank (PNB) on Monday fixed a floor price of Rs 109.16 per share for its share sale through qualified institutional placement (QIP). The bank had taken board approval last year for raising up to Rs 7,500 crore via share sale in one or more tranches during 2024-25. The board approved and adopted the preliminary placement document together with the application form in connection with the issue, PNB said in a regulatory filing. It also approved the floor price Rs 109.16 per share based on the pricing formula as prescribed under Regulation 176 of the Sebi ICDR Regulations, it said. The bank may offer a discount of not more than 5 per cent on the floor price so calculated for the issue, it said. The issue price will be determined by the bank in consultation with the book running lead managers appointed in relation to the issue, it added.

Deposits, pricing of loans may be key tasks for new Federal Bank CEO

Improving pricing power key for better RoA

Home loan origination volumes decline 9% in June quarter, says report

Home loan originations dropped 9 per cent in the June quarter, according to a report released on Monday. From a value perspective, quantum of home loan originations was at par with the year-ago period, the report by credit information company Transunion Cibil said. The outstanding balances on home loans grew only 14 per cent during the quarter, making it the slowest growth across all categories which constitute retail lending, the report said. Interestingly, the decline in origination volumes and the sluggish growth in outstanding balances came at a time when the incidence of non-payment of loans reduced during the quarter, the report said, pointing out that the advances overdue for over 90 days stood at 0.9 per cent in June 2024, showing a 0.32 per cent improvement. "India's retail credit growth moderated in the quarter ending June 2024 as financial institutions tightened the supply of credit, particularly on consumption-led products like credit cards, consumer durable loans and .

Finance Ministry urges DRTs, banks to expedite loan recovery processes

FinMin calls on DRTs to engage borrowers in smaller cases outside tribunals to alleviate pendency burden

Boots on the ground: Businesses correspondent model needs mending

The business correspondent channel for financial inclusion is calling for a pay raise, investments and an end to penalties

'One State, One RRB' policy gains momentum; may make debut in March 2025

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has urged RRBs to focus on improving digital services and supporting MSME growth

Banks to play major role in making India developed by 2047: FM Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said the banking sector will have to play a crucial role in driving the agenda of making India a developed nation or Viksit Bharat by 2047. The Finance Minister was speaking at an event here to mark the 90th Foundation Day of the Bank of Maharashtra, a public sector lender. "Banks will have to play a crucial role in driving the agenda set by the Prime Minister and by your role, we are going to give greater momentum to achieving this dream," she said. Sitharaman said banks will be required to give strong momentum to the infrastructure sector, ensure the availability of need-based funding to MSMEs, bring unbanked population under the ambit of formal banking channels, and help increase insurance penetration. She noted that technology is changing the banking landscape as it provides a secure and easy-to-navigate digital banking experience to all customers. However, she added that "you (banks) cannot have a digital system which somewhere

HDFC Bank likely to close $1 billion loan sale this month: Report

HDFC Bank merged with parent Housing Development Finance Corp in July 2023, adding a large pool of mortgage loans to the bank's portfolio but a much smaller amount of deposits

Casa ratio of banks may fall to pre-Covid level: SBI chief CS Setty

But Setty says SBI will hold on to current share by tapping small businesses

Rs 42,300 cr loans given since launch of account aggregator framework

Nearly half of it has been facilitated in the second half of financial year 2024 (H2FY24)

Cracking the whip: Banks may face bigger fines for non-compliance

Current penalties may not act as effective deterrent: Experts

Consumer protection: Bank not liable for lack of pledged goods cover

The National Commission noted that merely because the bank had obtained the previous policy did not absolve the customer of its primary responsibility to obtain coverage

Indian Bank raises Rs 5,000 crore via long-term infrastructure bonds

This strategic move is part of Indian Bank's efforts to mobilise resources for credit growth and refinancing of infrastructure projects

Bidders' insistence on 51% stake in Yes Bank may jeopardise stake buy

Bidders' insistence on having a 51 per cent stake in Yes Bank may end up jeopardising the stake buy, an informed source said on Thursday. When asked on whether the deal will go through by the end of this fiscal, the source, who is not authorised to speak to the media, said the deal itself is in a quandary. As per the source, the talks on any deal "are not going anywhere" because of all the bidders' push on the 51 per cent stake. The source explained that the RBI is uncomfortable with a foreign entity owning a 51 per cent stake in a big entity like Yes Bank. There are reports of two bidders being in the fray including Japan's SMBC and Emirates NBD. The suitors are directly speaking with RBI, but the central bank is not amenable on giving the ownership control. At present, the regulations allow for a maximum of 26 per cent stake by an entity in a bank and in cases where it is higher, has set a fixed timeline for getting it down. As per the source, there has been no progress on the

NaBFID plans Rs 53,000 crore debt raise in FY25, says MD Rajkiran Rai

NaBFID has already sanctioned Rs 20,000 cr of its target of Rs1 trillion for the 12 months through March 2025

Indian economy has finally taken off, says veteran banker Deepak Parekh

US manufacturing, infra cos should invest more, says veteran banker

Consumption loan portfolio expands 15% to Rs 90 trillion in FY24: Report

India's consumption loan portfolio grew by 15.2 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 90.3 lakh crore as of March 2024, according to the latest credit bureau report. The fourth edition of CRIF High Mark report noted a slowdown from the 17.4 per cent growth recorded in March 2023, largely due to a deceleration in the home loans segment, which accounts for 40.1 per cent of the overall consumption loan portfolio by value. The home loans portfolio saw growth slowing down to 7.9 per cent YoY in FY24, from the 23 per cent expansion seen in FY23. This was mainly due to muted growth in "originations", which increased by 9.2 per cent in FY'24 compared to 18.2 per cent in the previous fiscal year. Origination refers to the process by which a lender creates or initiates a new loan or credit, including evaluating, processing, and approving a borrower's application. The report finds a shift toward higher ticket sizes, with a growing preference for loans above Rs 35 lakh, although the average ticket

Conundrum of the credit-deposit ratio: Understanding RBI's concerns

The RBI is also concerned that the banks have turned to bulk deposits and certificates of deposit to mobilise funds, as retail deposits (both savings and term deposits) have become stagnant

BoB raises Rs 5,000 cr through infra bond issue, second in a fortnight

State-owned Bank of Baroda on Monday announced that it has raised Rs 5,000 crore through a 10-year infrastructure bond issuance subscribed by domestic investors. This is the second issuance from the lender in a fortnight after the Rs 5,000 crore sale on August 26 and comes amid a raft of such issuances. Banks have become more aggressive at tapping into such avenues given the slower deposit growth in the system. The bank was able to squeeze the pricing of the newest offering to 7.26 per cent, 0.04 per cent lower than its last one, officials said, adding this is the tightest pricing for an issuance in recent times. Both the issuances were oversubscribed nearly three times, and it was investor feedback on missing out at the last issuance that prompted the bank to come back with another offering sooner. With the latest issuance, the bank has exhausted the board's approved limit to raise Rs 10,000 crore from infra bond issuances and there are no immediate plans to raise more, the offic

Airtel Finance offers FD service, partners with NBFCs, small finance banks

Bharti Airtel on Monday announced the launch of a fixed deposits marketplace under its digital arm Airtel Finance, backed by partnerships with leading NBFCs and small finance banks. The marketplace enables Airtel Finance to provide an assured return and fixed-income investment option on the digital platform that is built on top of Airtel's Thanks App framework, according to a release. "Bharti Airtel today announced the launch of a fixed deposits marketplace under its digital arm, Airtel Finance. These fixed deposits come at an attractive interest rate of up to 9.1 per cent per annum," it said. Airtel Finance has offered the fixed deposit service through partnerships with multiple small finance banks and NBFCs including Utkarsh Small Finance Bank, Shivalik Bank, Suryoday Small Finance Bank and Shriram Finance. This will help customers lock in assured returns at high rates of interest. Anshul Kheterpal, Chief Business Officer, Airtel Finance said, "We have partnered with the best ban