HDFC Bank Q1 net profit up 30%
Mumbai: HDFC Bank has registered an over 30 per cent increase in net profit for the first quarter ended June 30, 2003 at Rs 107.28 crore, up from Rs 82.41 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. Rise in interest earned and other income enabled the bank to post higher profit. Interest earned leapt by 22 per cent to Rs 584.46 crore in Q1 FY04 from Rs 479.16 crore in Q1 in the previous fiscal. Other income — which includes commission fees, foreign exchange earnings, earnings from derivative transactions and profits from debt securities — increased by 63 per cent to Rs 132.73 crore (Rs 81.32 crore), said the bank in a press release on Monday.

Total income jumped by 28 per cent to Rs 717.19 crore (Rs 560.48 crore), while total expenditure jumped by 20 per cent to Rs 492.92 crore (Rs 410.85 crore). Income on investments went up by 17 per cent to Rs 306.85 crore (Rs 262.12 crore). The bank saw its net interest margin cross 3.5 per cent for the quarter. Other provisions and contingencies increased to Rs 66.50 crore from Rs 34.62 crore. Total deposits grew 32.6 per cent to Rs 23,340 crore as compared to Rs 17,602 crore in the first quarter of the previous year, while the bank's core customers assets (including advances, corporate debentures CPs etc.) increased by 43.1 per cent on a year-on-year basis to Rs 14,113 crore (Rs 9,865 crore), said the release. Retail loans grew 132.9 per cent on a year-on-year basis to Rs 3,790 crore and now form 30.8 per cent of gross advances as against 21.7 per cent of gross advances as at June 30, 2002.
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Deutsche Bank launches dNETS
Bangalore: Deutsche Bank on Monday announced the launch of Deutsche Network Services Pvt Ltd, (dNETS) in Bangalore, marking its first step into business process outsourcing (BPO) in India. A wholly-owned subsidiary of Deutsche Bank, dNETS will initially commence a pilot processing centre in Bangalore for global cash operations and electronic payment processing.

dNETS will process payment transactions for Deutsche Bank entities around the world including those located in New York, Frankfurt, London and several Asian countries. Initially, electronic payments processing will be undertaken in dollar and euro and will eventually broaden to include other currencies, the release said. Operating from the International Tech Park, Bangalore, dNETS will commence initially with approximately 50 employees, which is likely to increase by several folds by end-2004.
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South Indian Bank eyes Rs 12,480 crore turnover
Kochi: South Indian Bank, which is in its platinum jubilee year, plans to achieve a total business turnover of Rs 12,480 crore, with the deposit base growing to Rs 8,040 crore and an advance portfolio of Rs 4,440 crore. Addressing the 75th AGM at Thrissur today, the bank's chairman and CEO, A. Sethumadhavan, said that the bank proposed to open about 13 more branches during the year, taking the total network of customer outlets to 454, comprising of 404 branches and 50 extension counters.

As of March 2003, the bank had a total capital and reserves of Rs 320.98 crore and a total business of Rs 10,474 crore. The gross profit of the bank had touched Rs 216.47 crore at the end of last year, while the net profit grew to Rs 72.33 crore. As a part of platinum jubilee celebrations, it is proposed to introduce a range of new products and services to suit the various segments of the bank's clientele. To mark this occasion, a new scheme called `Focus on Village' aiming at all round development of a village in coordination with self help groups was launched at a village in Kochi, couple of days back.
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State Bank scheme to attract RIB depositors
Mumbai: State Bank of India, reports suggest, has framed a special deposit scheme to attract a portion of the Resurgent India Bonds (RIB) redemptions back into its coffers. The special deposit scheme will have two-dollar deposit products, which will offer rates, which are higher than the prevailing rates on FCNR deposits (Libor minus 25 basis points.) The products are believed to be designed in a way, which will appeal to the NRI customer, especially in the wake of the wide differentials in interest rates between the domestic and international financial markets.

The bank is reportedly gearing up to shortly embark on international road shows to market the deposit scheme from end-July. The RIB's raised $4.2 billion from NRIs in 1998, and when it matures on October 1, 2003, the total amount due, inclusive of interest amounts to $5.5 billion. The Reserve Bank of India has already made arrangements with SBI, for the redemption of the bonds and to ensure that there is no impact on the domestic liquidity in the money and foreign exchange markets. The apex bank will sell the foreign currency required by SBI for the payment of investors at the prevailing market rates, in exchange for rupee resources. A large portion of the redemption requirements in foreign exchange will be met out of RBI's forward foreign exchange assets.
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AMP Sanmar offers bonus for life insurance plans
Chennai: The board of directors of AMP Sanmar Assurance Co announced a bonus for four of their life insurance plans on Monday. Policyholders in three of the plans would receive simple reversionary bonus. Nithya Shree (Whole Life Plan) holders would receive 7 per cent simple bonus on their sum assured. Dhana Shree (Money Back Plan) and Yuva Shree (Child Protection Plan) policyholders would receive a bonus of 3.5 per cent.

Policyholders in Subha Shree (Special Endowment Plan) would receive a compound bonus of 3.5 per cent. The bonuses are payable to the policies that were in force as on March 31, 2003. Through a media release, S.V. Mony, vice-chairman, AMP Sanmar, said that the company expects to insure 60,000 lives and earn a first year premium of Rs 30 crore in 2003-04.
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LIC shifts to Linux operating system
Chennai: Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) has shifted to a Linux operating system on the heels of pinpricks experienced with a Unix system. At a media gathering to introduce LIC's new pension policy, R.R. Nair, additional zonal manager, said "we are shifting over to Linux; almost 75 per cent of the branches have shifted". LIC officials said that all the branches in the South Zone (Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Pondicherry) have just completed the transition to Linux operating system, and other zones would do the same in a couple of months. At present, LIC sources Linux from a vendor who has customised the same for LIC
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LIC pension scheme gets tremendous response
Kochi: The introduction of the new LIC scheme, Varishta Pension Bhima Yojana, in the Ernakulam division has evoked tremendous response from the market with over 1,000 applications received on the first day of the launch itself. The confidence of the people in getting high returns from other pension schemes of LIC such as Jeevan Dhara, Jeevan Suraksha and Jeevan Akshaya has motivated them towards the new scheme, M.R. Kumar, senior divisional manager of the Ernakulam division, said.

Earlier, the former judge of the Kerala High Court, Justice K. Narayana Kurup, handed over the policy documents to 11 policyholders at a simple function held in the LIC premises. For investors looking for safety and at the same time an assured return above the market rates, the new scheme is very attractive as it offered a minimum rate of return of 9 per cent, Mr Kumar said. The new scheme also offered an opportunity to existing policyholders aged above 55 years to receive the maturity amounts from LIC policies to reinvest their money at the attractive interest rate.
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IDBI to repay last series of SLR bonds in August
Mumbai: The Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) is all set to repay the last of the SLR bonds — 13.5 per cent IDBI SLR Bonds 2003 — issued about 10 years back resulting in a saving of at least Rs 13 crore of interest outgo a year. The principal amount of the 66th series bonds are scheduled to be repaid on August 25, 2003, along with interest accrued till August 24, 2003, IDBI said. An IDBI official said: "The 10-year bonds issued in August 1993, were the last in the series of bonds qualified for statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) issued by the developmental financial institution after which the scheme of allowing FIs to raise funds through issue of SLR paper was discontinued."

"The cost of funds was at around seven per cent last year. Considering this, there will be a saving of a minimum of 6.5 per cent per year of interest on the total value of bonds of Rs 200 crore by replacing the amount at present rates," the sources added. The issue of SLR paper by FIs was allowed to enable them to raise cheaper funds for developmental activities till the norms were amended under the new economic policy initiated in 1991. The sources also said that this was the only 10-year bond issued by the IDBI, and earlier the tenor of these bonds used to be 15 years - 20 years. Thus, the book closure of the 66th series has been fixed from July 25 and no requests for transfer would be entertained from July 24, 2003, IDBI said.
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CLB puts off TMB case hearing till 8 August
Chennai: The Company Law Board (CLB) has impleaded that all the 10 directors of the Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TMB) as respondents and have asked them to file their reply to the Union government petition by July 25. The case is slated to be heard on August 8. In its recent order dated July 9, the bench has asked the Central government to serve a copy of its amended petition immediately to all the 10 directors of the bank excluding the two directors appointed by the government recently.
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