Page 6 - Banking Finance September 2024

BANK UPDATE

2024, which was introduced by Minis- Bandhan Bank to focus on
ter of State for Finance Pankaj Attention Subscribers
Chaudhary, proposes to raise the women, students, NRIs Please renew your Subscription of The
threshold for 'substantial interest' for Bandhan Bank has stated that it will Insurance Times Journal to receive
directorships, which could increase focus on students, women and non- copy of the journal uninterruptedly.
from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 2 crore. The resident Indians to raise its customer You can now pay by GPAY, Phonepe,
threshold was last fixed in 1968. The base nationwide. The private sector Paytm, Amazon, ICICI Pay, BHIM UPI
proposed bill allows a bank account bank has introduced ‘Avni’, an exclusive
holder to have up to four nominees. savings account for women, reports
This includes provisions for simulta- Sarthak Ganguly. It also offers reward
neous and successive nominations, of- points, named ‘Delight Points’, for fre-
fering greater flexibility and conve- quent transactions. The bank has
nience for depositors and their legal
around 3.5 crore customers, with 73%
heirs, especially concerning deposits, women, at 2.6 crore.
articles in safe custody, and safety lock-
ers, sources said. Ratan Kumar Kesh, managing director
and chief executive officer (interim) of
It also seeks to enable the transfer of
unclaimed dividends, shares, and inter- Bandhan Bank, said, “We have more
women customers than men, and this
est or redemption of bonds to the In-
has prompted us to introduce Avni.
vestor Education and Protection Fund
(IEPF), allowing individuals to claim However, the benefits of Avni will
transfers or refunds from the fund, not apply to the existing women
thus safeguarding investors' interests. customers.”

To push jobs, govt banks, on small-scale industries
Small was big for FM Sitharaman as she announced a series of measures to
help micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to address their financ-
ing requirements, as they often run out of funds to meet their operational
and expansion requirements, and also sought to push technological upgrade.
MSMEs are seen to be major job creators in the economy, with the 2.7 crore Sashi Publications Easy Payment
units already accounting for over 20 crore jobs and ties in with Modi govt's Modes :-
focus on employment in the Budget. i) UPI ID: SASHIBOOKS@KOTAK
ii) GPAY: 9830171022@okbizaxis
"We have taken eight steps to address specific problems of MSMEs," FM
said at a post-Budget press conference. iii) PAYTM: 9830171022@paytm
A key announcement related to helping small manufacturing units tap long- iv) NEFT: Current A/C
term loans for purchase of machinery - without collateral or third-party guar- 402120110000327 of 'SASHI
antee. For this, a credit guarantee scheme has been proposed, which will PUBLICATIONS PRIVATE
pool the credit risk of MSME borrowers to fund purchases up to Rs 100 crore. LIMITED, Bank of India, VVK
The borrower will provide an upfront guarantee fee, with an annual guar- Road Branch., Kolkata, India,
antee fee on reducing loan balance. IFSC Code : BKID0004021
"This is a major change as even a Rs 50 lakh bank loan currently takes v) Credit Card:
months. Now, we can hope to get a loan quickly without collateral soon www.sashipublications.com
after selecting the machine. It will be a huge leap for the sector, Rs 100 For any query please call
crore is a milestone," said Anil Bharadwaj, secretary general of Federation 9073791022/9883398055
of Indian Micro and Small & Medium Enterprises (FISME).
www.sashipublications.com

6 | 2024 | SEPTEMBER | BANKING FINANCE