Page 17 - Banking Finance November 2021

CO-OPERATIVE BANK NEWS

The bank in Punjab was placed under Pravin Zantye as the vice chairman of were suspended for allegedly swindling
all-inclusive directions on close of busi- the bank. Oncologist Dr Shekhar Salkar Rs. 2.39 crore. They had pledged fake
ness on March 25, 2019, which was is a director of the bank, too. jewellery with the bank and swindled
later extended up to March 24, 2020, the amount, it was learnt after a de-
In 2019-20, the bank reported a net
and further extended till October 24, profit of Rs 2.32 crore, a 3% decline partmental enquiry.
2021. over the previous year. Loan defaults Cooperative bank officials said the sus-
The RBI had said then that it has been stood at Rs 21.8 crore indicating gross pended staff were: S. Lingappa, gen-
closely monitoring the situation and non-performing assets (NPA) at 7.25% eral manager in-charge; K.
unlike in the case of commercial banks, of total advances. Net NPAs stood at Jagadeesan, cashier; B. Saravanan,
the Reserve Bank has no powers to Rs 8.5 crore in 2019-20. The bank's clerk and V. Mohan, appraiser.
draw up an enforceable scheme of re- deposits stood at Rs 522 crore as on
Among them, Mohan was a temporary
construction of a cooperative bank. March 31, 2020. The latest financial
staff. They were working with the bank
Nevertheless, in the interest of the de- figures were unavailable. for more than a decade.
positors and the stability of the coop- The recent inspection report revealed A complaint was registered with the
erative banking sector, the Reserve non-compliance with RBI's directions Commercial Crime Investigation (CCI)
Bank of India, in consultation with vari- pertaining to credit exposure and KYC. wing of the Tamil Nadu police in
ous stakeholders and authorities, is RBI had issued a showcause notice to Chennai by S. Kamalakannan, deputy
working for revival of the bank, the RBI the bank seeking clarification and ad- registrar, Tamil Nadu State Apex Co-
had said. vising the Bicholim headquartered operative Bank (Cheyyar division).
bank to explain why a penalty should
Rs 4 lakh fine imposed on not be imposed for non-compliance "We are also attaching the assets of
the suspended staff. They pledged fake
Bicholim Co-op Bank with statutory banking norms. jewellery every month for a year,

In a fresh blow for Goa's cooperative "After considering the bank's written mostly in their relatives and friends'
banking sector, the Reserve Bank of In- reply to the showcause notice and oral names," K. Rajkumar, Joint Registrar,
dia (RBI) imposed a monetary penalty submissions made during the personal TNSC Bank (Tiruvannamalai Region),
of Rs four lakh on the Bicholim Urban hearing and subsequent additional sub- said.
Co-operative Bank Ltd for not comply- missions, RBI came to the conclusion From September 10, 2020, the sus-
ing with statutory banking norms. that the aforesaid charges of non-com- pended staff had been pledging small
pliance with RBI directions was sub-
The penalty comes after the manda- quantities of fake jewellery in 27
stantiated and warranted imposition of
tory annual inspection report of the bundles and swindled Rs. 2.39 crore.
monetary penalty," Dayal said in a
bank based on its financial position as In fact, of the total 4,600 gold loans
on March 31, 2020, revealed deficien- statement. that were disbursed since September
cies pertaining to Know Your Customer While no other curbs have been im- 2020, 77 were given to fake jewellery
(KYC) norms. posed on the Bicholim Urban Co-opera- that were pledged by them.
tive Bank, RBI's strictures come after
"This action is based on deficiencies in The action by the TNSC Bank was based
regulatory compliance and is not in- the Mapusa Urban Co-operative Bank on a circular issued by the registrar for
and Madgaum Urban Co-operative
tended to pronounce upon the validity cooperative societies directing the
Bank lost their banking licences.
of any transaction or agreement en- managing directors of the Tamil Nadu
tered into by the bank with its custom- 4 cooperative bank staff in State Apex Cooperative Bank, Tamil
ers," chief general manager Yogesh Nadu Cooperative State Agriculture
Dayal said. Arani suspended for swin- and Rural Development Bank, all Cen-
Bicholim Urban Co-operative Bank has dling Rs. 2.39 cr. tral cooperative banks and joint regis-

12 branches across the state and the Four staff, including the appraiser of trars of all zones, to form panel to scru-
bank's website lists Mayem BJP MLA Arani Cooperative Urban Bank Limited, tinise gold jewellery loans.

BANKING FINANCE | NOVEMBER | 2021 | 17