The banking sector is getting into a faster gear. On Monday, Switzerland?s Credit Suisse got an in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India to begin banking operations, while Citigroup formally announced the appointment of Pramit Jhaveri as Citi country officer to head its business and franchise in India. On the same day, the ANZ group named former Citibank India chief Mark Robinson as chief executive officer for South and South East Asia.
The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) has already received an in-principle banking licence on March 3. Australia’s fourth-largest lender has said in its statement it hoped to set up a branch in Mumbai within the next 12 months.
Credit Suisse also plans to set up its first branch in Mumbai. In a statement it said the licence will complement the capabilities of its non-banking financial company in India.
The two new licences in a month, industry sources point out, shows RBI has once again opened its door to foreign players. It had stopped granting any new licences to foreign banks after the onset of the global financial crisis.
During the last two years except for Singapore-based DBS, only Swiss major UBS was given licence.