Indian Oil Corp, the nation?s largest state-owned refiner, plans to raise R100 crore ($16 million) selling so-called oil bonds maturing in 2026, according to a person familiar with the matter. ?The company seeks to sell 6.9% notes, guaranteed by the government,? said a source on condition of anonymity.
Banks eye overseas bonds to raise funds
Some banks are looking to issue bonds in overseas markets to raise capital under Basel III guidelines, a senior central bank official said on the sidelines of an event on Thursday. Chandan Sinha, the chief general manager of the department of banking operations and development, also said rules to allow credit enhancement for domestic corporate bonds are likely to come by December. Credit enhancement would allow lower-ranked borrowers to have ratings for their debt enhanced by third parties such as banks, which would provide some form of backing for the debt via, for example, additional collateral or insurance.
Mahila Bank to open 16 branches in 4 wks
Bharatiya Mahila Bank, the first all-woman bank, plans to open 16 more branches in the next four months. “We plan to add another 16 branches to our network in the next four months,” Mahila Bank chairperson and managing director Usha Ananthasubramanian told PTI. Two branches would be inauguarted as early as first week of next month. These are Delhi and Indore branches, she added. New branches would be coming up in state capitals and Union territories. The bank intends to fulfil its obligation of meeting 25% of its branches in rural and unbanked areas from the next fiscal.
RBS India unit exits primary dealership
The Reserve Bank said on Thursday the Royal Bank of Scotland will no longer act as a primary dealer to facilitate trading in government securities. “In view of the request received from Royal Bank of Scotland, India to surrender its authorisation for conducting primary dealer (PD) business, RBI has cancelled the said authorisation of the bank with effect from December 2, 2013,” the central bank said in a release.
?Subsidiarisation to help foreign banks?
The Reserve Bank guidelines for foreign banks to operate through wholly-owned subsidiaries in India is a step in the right direction as they play an important role in economic growth, a study said. ?Considering the capital required to fuel economic growth, foreign banks have to play a significant role along with new private sector banks to cater to growing credit demand,” Deloitte said in a report. In a bid to better regulate them and avoid 2008-type crisis, RBI earlier this month said that foreign banks with complex structures which do not provide adequate disclosure would have to operate in India only through wholly-owned subsidiaries (WOS).