Volkswagen gets licence to set up NBFC

According to Volkswagen Finance Private Limited, a subsidiary of Germany based Volkswagen Financial Services AG, the RBI has granted it a license  to set up a Non - Banking Finance Company (NBFC) in India.

"VWFPL has been granted an NBFC licence by the Reserve Bank of India, enabling it to make its first offering to the Indian market with three product lines -- VW Finance, Skoda Finance, Audi Finance," the company said in a statement.

Volkswagen Finance India's board chairman, Joern Achim Kurzrock said the compay had received the licence from the RBI for setting up its NBFC last week. He added the company had already begun operations and would soon cover pan-India.

The three financial products-Volkswagen Finance, Audi Finance and Skoda Finance would be available in VW Group's 164 outlets pan-India.

The company to be set up with an initial investment of over Rs 120-crore would have its headquarters in Mumbai. The company has already recruited 120 professionals and according to plans its head count would increase to 300 by end-2011.

''India being one of the fastest growing economies, Volkswagen Finance wants to present itself in the Indian market as a mobility provider with products which fully respect the needs of Volkswagen, Skoda and Audi customers. Our focus is to support sales of our branded vehicles to customers,'' Kurzrock said.

''Besides classical financing we are also introducing a bundled loan with insurance and maintenance packages and become a one-stop shop to support the sales of our brand vehicles in India,'' he said.

Volkswagen Financial Services AG, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Volkswagen AG has a global customer base of 60 lakh, across 38 countries.