Central Bank of India to raise Rs.700 crore tier-II capital

The bank is raising Rs.700 crore through issue of bonds that would qualify as tier-II capital. CRISIL has assigned the bond issue a rating of AA and said the bank's weak asset quality, modest capitalisation levels and average earnings profile temper these rating strengths. Banks NPA level is 6.85% as on March 31, 2006 Tier-I capital adequacy is 7.19% as on March 31, 2006

Central Bank of India to raise Rs.700 crore tier-II capital

The bank is raising Rs.700 crore through issue of bonds that would qualify as tier-II capital. CRISIL has assigned the bond issue a rating of AA and said the bank's weak asset quality, modest capitalisation levels and average earnings profile temper these rating strengths. Banks NPA level is 6.85% as on March 31, 2006 Tier-I capital adequacy is 7.19% as on March 31, 2006

BoE rates steady at 4.75%

The Bank of England kept interest rates steady at 4.75% for the second month running, but most economists predict a hike next month. " We expect a 25 basis points November rate hike, but then a period on hold as the problem in the US intensify and become more obvious. Untimately, this will lead to UK rate cuts from mid-2007" said Mr. Dominic Bryant, at BNP Paribas.

NABARD scheme for SHGs

The National Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development ( NABARD ) will launch a programme enabling Self-Help Groups ( SHG) to avail themselves of credit from post offices according to a press release from NABARD. Through an agreement between the bank and the Dept. of Posts, Tamil Nadu Circle, the SHGs will be able to invest their savings in the post office schemes and avail themselves of loans through the post offices, the release said. The pilot project will be launched on October 7 in Kancheepuram and Pudukotti districts, Tamil Nadu, and will be extended to Sivaganga shortly. NABARD has earmarked Rs.34 lakhs for lending to the post offices to support the scheme.

Corporation Bank gets HC nod for merger

Corporation Bank has received approval from the Karnataka High Court for the merger of CorpBank Homes Ltd with itself. In a filing on the Bombay Stock Exchange, Mangalore based Corporation Bank said the scheme of amalgamation of Corpbank Homes with the bank had been approved by High Court vide its order dated August 11, 2006. The order had been filed with the registrar of companies at Bangalore on October 4 and the amalgamation is also effected from the same date

Passbook facility must for SB account-holders

The Reserve Bank of India has mandated all banks to offer savings bank account holders the option of the passbook facility. The cost of the facility will have to be borne by the bank. If a customer chooses to get the statement of account then banks must issue monthly statements and not quarterly statements. Currently many private banks are not offering Pass book facility and additionally customers have to pay a fee to get their statements.

SBH raises Tier-II capital

State Bank of Hyderabad has issued bonds of Rs.550 crore with a green shoe option of Rs.50 crore through private placement. The tenure of the redeemable, unsecured , non-convertible subordinated bonds without any call option is for 115 months and carry a coupon rate of 8.8% per anum. Following this the CAR of the bank will be above 11 per cent.

Morgan Stanley buys a bank in China

US investment bank Morgan Stanley said it had gained access to the key Chinese market by buying a small local lender. The acquisition of Nan Tung Bank, based in the south Chinese city of Zhuhai, seemed to open the door to the potentially lucrative business of providing products denominated in the local yuan currency to corporate customers. Foreign banks would normally have to operate for at least five years in China.

How valuable are our banks ?

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), China's largest lender is coming out with IPO. After the IPO, its valuation will roughly be about $87 billion. This is almost one and half times of the collective market capitalisation of all the listed Indian banks. The market cap of 37 listed Indian banks is roughly $62.76 billion. But ICBC is still for behind Citigroup which has market cap of $140 billion.

UTI Bank hybrid issue mops up Rs.214 crore

UTI Bank has raised Rs.214 crore through a hybrid Tier-I issuance in the domestic market. It has offered a coupon of 10.05% on its Tier-I bond issue, with a size of Rs.214 crore. So far, UTI Bank has raised $150m through upper Tier-II issuances in the over- seas market. In the next couple of months, it may look at raising another Rs.200 crore through the upper Tier-I route from overseas markets. Post issue, the capital adequacy ratio of the bank is likely to raise to over 11%.

UTI Bank hybrid issue mops up Rs.214 crore

UTI Bank has raised Rs.214 crore through a hybrid Tier-I issuance in the domestic market. It has offered a coupon of 10.05% on its Tier-I bond issue, with a size of Rs.214 crore. So far, UTI Bank has raised $150m through upper Tier-II issuances in the over- seas market. In the next couple of months, it may look at raising another Rs.200 crore through the upper Tier-I route from overseas markets. Post issue, the capital adequacy ratio of the bank is likely to raise to over 11%.