1 mar 2003

pension plan for happy greying
coimbatore: the proposed launch of a plan by lic for citizens over the age of 55 guaranteeing an annual return of 9 per cent would serve as one of the best investment options for those seeking pensions.

private players will miss mass pensions action
mumbai: icici prudential would have been happy to have an opportunity to be part of the mass pensions segment.

no big bang, but...
new delhi: the expected big bang announcement on freeing of foreign direct investment (fdi) limit in banking ended in disappointment.instead of lifting the 20 per cent cap on fdi in state bank of india (sbi) or other nationalised banks as was being expected by the capital markets, the finance minister, jaswant singh, limited his tampering with the limits to only the private sector bank where fdi of `at least 74 per cent' would be allowed against the previous 49 per cent.

it's time for private banks to go rural
new delhi: private banks will be encouraged to open more branches in rural areas, the finance minister has said. the statistics seem to bear out the case that private banks have hitherto been shy of going into india interior.

savings bank, repo rates cut
mumbai: the reserve bank of india on friday reduced the interest rate on savings accounts from four per cent per annum to 3.5 per cent with immediate effect.

28 feb 2003

hudco doubles sanctions to infrastructure projects
new delhi: housing and urban development corporation sanctions for infrastructure projects have more than doubled to rs 10,142.56 crore in the current year compared to rs 5,098 crore last year.

lack of demand forces tiic to scrap two finance schemes
chennai: the tamil nadu industrial investment corporation ltd has dispensed with the hire purchase and leasing finance schemes with effect from january 28.

sbi buys over 1 per cent equity stake in dfhi from idbi
mumbai: the state bank of india has bought 24,94,850 equity shares in discount and finance house of india ltd from industrial development bank of india for rs 315 per share.

icici bank term deposits get highest safety rating
new delhi: credit rating agency icra assigned the highest safety rating of 'maaa' to icici bank's term deposit programme and reaffirmed the highest safety 'a1+' rating to certificate of deposits for the enhanced amount of rs 3,000 crore.

japan banks'funding drive strains family ties
mumbai: japan's biggest banking group, mizuho holdings, is finding that out as it goes about raising a massive $7.3 billion in funds from its group firms to boost capital levels that have been left looking thin by a government crackdown on bad loans.

punjab national bank to reduce net npas to 5 per cent by 2005
new delhi: punjab national bank, one of the leading nationalised banks, was all set to bring down its net non-performing assets to international standards, having maintained a consistent track record of profitability, pnb chairman, ss kohli said

norms tightened for inter-branch reconciliation
mumbai: the reserve bank of india has decided to reduce the time period allowed to banks for making provisions against the net debit balance in the inter-branch accounts from one year to six months from the year ending march 31, 2004.

ubi plans offices in 3 gulf nations
mumbai: union bank of india (ubi) is in the process of setting up representative offices abroad - at united arab emirates (uae), sultanate of oman and qatar. the plan is expected to crystallise within the next 3- 5 months.

corpn bank cuts fcnr (b) rates for select periods
mangalore: corporation bank has reduced interest rates for select tenures on fcnr (b) deposits with effect from february 28. while the interest rate on dollar deposits for tenure of one-year to less than two years remains at 1.10 per cent, the interest rate for a period of two years to less than three years and for three-year dollar deposits are 1.55 per cent (1.65 per cent) and 2.05 per cent (2.20 per cent). fcnr (b) deposits are currently accepted in three currencies - the dollar, pound and euro.

sbi bets rs 1,000 cr on venture with maruti
new delhi: state bank of india has taken an exposure of rs 1,000 crore for the current financial year under the sbi maruti finance scheme, a strategic tie-up between the largest public sector bank and maruti udyog, the country's largest passenger car manufacturer in india.

27 feb 2003