Page 10 - Banking Finance November 2017

BANK UPDATE

Reviving credit growth, Bandhan Bank planning to add 60 branches in 6
and reducing NPA the months
top priority for SBI new Bandhan Bank IS planning to open another 60 branches over the next 6 months
as part of efforts to expand its presence across the coun-
chairman try. "Currently, we have 840 branches and by March it
Reviving credit growth and resolving should increase to 900 across the country," Bandhan Bank
stressed assets will Managing Director Chandra Shekhar Ghosh told PTI. As a
be the top priorities result of this, he said, the bank would also add 2,000 people
of Rajnish Kumar, the to the workforce.
newly-appointed Meanwhile, the bank has appointed five merchant bank-
chairman of State ers, including Goldman Sachs Group and JP Morgan Chase to manage, for its
Bank of India. Kumar indicated that initial public offer (IPO). "We have recently appointed five merchant bankers
credit growth will be driven by retail and the process of IPO has just started. We are not looking to go public this fiscal
lending.
but may be next fiscal," he said. It should happen before August next year, he
Indian Bank releases said.

handbook on forex busi- The Reserve Bank of India's guidelines mandated the bank to get itself listed
within three years from the commencement of banking operations. The bank
ness started its operations in August 2015. The bank's capital adequacy ratio stood
Kishor Kumar, Managing Director at 26 per cent as on June 30.
and CEO, Indian Bank, released the
handbook 'FAQs on Forex Business' at Bharat Financial Inclusion, micro finance firm to merge
Corporate Office, Chennai. A. S. with Induslnd Bank
Rajeev, Executive Director; M. K. IndusInd Bank said it would merge microfinance firm Bharat Financial Inclusion
Bhattacharya, Executive Director; S. (formerly SKS Microfinance), currently valued at
Krishnan, General manager; B. nearly Rs 14,000 crore, with itself through a share
Parthasarathy, General Manager and swap deal. In this long-awaited merger, for each
P. C. Dash, DGM were present at the 1,000 shares of Bharat Financial, its shareholders
occasion.
will get 639 shares of IndusInd Bank, the lender
India to grow at 7 per- said.
cent in Financial Year IndusInd Bank is promoted by the Hinduja group, the billionaire NRI family based
in the UK that holds 26.6% in the lender. Kismet Microfinance, the promoters of
2018, as per World Bank Bharat Financial, hold just 1.65% in it while several mutual funds and foreign

In its South Asia Economic Focus, the funds together hold about 78% in the micro lender, disclosed shareholding pat-
World Bank tern on the BSE showed. Arpwood Capital, Credit Suisse Securities and Morgan
reduced Stanley were the financial advisors to the deal.
India's GDP
growth fore- IMF suggests reform measures
cast to 7% International Monetary Fund has suggested a three-pronged approach for struc-
for 2017-18 tural reforms in India that includes reducing the num-
from 7.2% estimated earlier, blaming ber of labour laws, improving infrastructure and closing
disruptions caused by demonetisation the gender gap among others. Kenneth Kang, deputy
and the implementation of the goods director of Asia-Pacific department, IMF said the
and services tax (GST), while main- favourable outlook for Asia was an important opportu-
taining at the same time that the nity for India to push forward with difficult reforms. "As
economy would claw back to grow at such, there should be three policy priorities in the area
7.4% by 2019-20. of structural reforms," Kang said.

10 | 2017 | NOVEMBER | BANKING FINANCE

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