Insurance cover for housing loan
Chennai: Sundaram Home Finance will offer a scheme of insurance cover for housing loans at a low premium. This newly-launched subsidiary of Sundaram Finance has entered into a strategic tie-up with United India Insurance for this purpose. Borrowers will have to pay only a one-time premium at the time of taking a loan. The cover will be available for the entire tenure of the loan.

Sundaram Home Finance has a paid-up capital of Rs 50 crore, of which 65 per cent will be held by Sundaram Finance and 20 per cent by International Finance Corporation. A multilateral financial institution is expected to pick up the balance equity. The company intends to focus on Tamil Nadu and other southern states.
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Government resumes borrowing
Mumbai: The government is planning to resume its debt market with a Rs 5,000-crore auction of 14-year paper on 8 January. With this, the government will cross the gross market borrowing target of Rs 84,014 crore by nearly Rs 4,600 crore. The paper is a re-issue of the existing 11.83 per cent 2014 security issued earlier. It was last traded at Rs 102.80.The auction will be conducted by the Reserve Bank of India. The announcement has resulted in a fall in gilt prices in the secondary market.
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Easier FDI planned
New Delhi: The commerce and industry ministry is repealing the Industrial Development and Regulation Act to pave way for easier foreign direct investments. However, the ministry plans to introduce a negative list for foreign direct investment, which will include the retailing sector, defence-related areas, atomic energy, drugs and narcotics-related industries.

The ministry has already circulated a cabinet note on this subject.
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IIBI plans software JV
Calcutta: Industrial Investment Bank of India is planning to set up a joint venture software project in collaboration with the West Bengal government and a non-resident Indian. The Calcutta-based financial institution, formerly known as Industrial Reconstruction Bank of India, has been finding its margins in financial services dwindling and is thus planning diversification of its activities. Details of the venture are being worked out, IIBI sources said.
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Dewan Housing plans online processing
Mumbai: Private sector housing finance company Dewan Housing Finance has engaged software solutions firm Aptech to develop a network solution to link all its 32 branches with the head office. The company intends to reduce customer response time and sanction loans expeditiously. Once the system is in place, an applicant will have to only fill in a form, which will be processed online, and the sanction details will be conveyed to the applicant in a matter of minutes. The services may also be available on the company’s website. It will take some six months to implement the project.

The company will soon launch a mutual fund with a sponsor contribution of Rs 6.5 crore towards a projected capital of Rs 10 crore. It is in search of a foreign collaborator for the venture.
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KPMG to advise GIC MF on revamp
New Delhi: The General Insurance Corporation has decided to restructure its mutual fund arm, GIC Mutual Fund, and has appointed KPMG as consultants for the revamp.

GIC’s chairman and managing director D. Sengupta said GIC wants a proper management of assets in the fund and KPMG is expected to advise the fund on this. The fund has accumulated losses of Rs 173 crore since 1994.
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Deutsche Bank plans revamp
Frankfurt: Deutsche Bank has launched a $260-million revamp, which will result in a shake-up in its retail and online banking units that will result in the closure of 250 branches, and loss of nearly 1,200 jobs. The bank proposes to merge several small branches and set up 50 business advice centres. The bank also plans to strengthen its online banking and e-commerce activities.

Deutsche Bank has been at the centre of speculation over possible acquisition or merger. Earlier, talks between Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Bank over a merger of their retail operations had been called off.
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