Manojit Saha And Rajesh Bhayani

Stories by Manojit Saha And Rajesh Bhayani

'Economy is Recovering Well'

'Economy is Recovering Well'

Rediff.com   9 Sep 2021

'Even if there is a third wave or a fourth wave, it is hard to see the economy will suffer like that (during the first wave).'

Covid Wanes, Credit Card Spending Rises

Covid Wanes, Credit Card Spending Rises

Rediff.com   8 Sep 2021

'Spends are likely to increase from the current levels because recovery is yet to fully be over.'

'It is not wise to be an inflation nutter'

'It is not wise to be an inflation nutter'

Rediff.com   7 Sep 2021

'People know if inflation is not within the tolerance band, then action will be taken so they do not expect inflation to rise above that.'

RBI buys record gold this year: At 700 tonnes, reserves up 27% in 2 years

RBI buys record gold this year: At 700 tonnes, reserves up 27% in 2 years

Rediff.com   19 Aug 2021

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has increased its gold purchases, as part of its foreign exchange (forex) reserves. In the first half (H1) of calendar year 2021 (CY21), the addition of gold to India's forex reserves has been the highest - on a half-yearly basis -at 29 tonnes. Now, the RBI's gold holding - as a proportion of its forex reserves - has for the first time crossed 700 tonnes.

PSB reforms only on paper; 10 don't even have chairman

PSB reforms only on paper; 10 don't even have chairman

Rediff.com   10 Aug 2021

The talk of governance reforms at public-sector banks seems to remain on paper, as a majority of them continue to be working with just a handful board members. Half of the board seat at these banks have been vacant. Ten of the 12 public-sector banks, even large ones like Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank and Union Bank of India - all except State Bank of India (SBI) and Bank of Baroda - don't even have a chairman. In 2014, while splitting the post of chairman & managing director (CMD), the government had decided to appoint non-executive chairmen at these banks. SBI, which has an executive chairman and four managing directors, was an exception.

PSBs' loan write-offs twice as much as govt's capital infusion

PSBs' loan write-offs twice as much as govt's capital infusion

Rediff.com   29 Jul 2021

Public sector banks (PSBs) have written off a massive Rs 8 trillion of loans in the seven years of the Narendra Modi government in office. This is more than twice the capital infused by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government during the period. Between 2014-15 and 2020-21 (FY21), the Centre had infused Rs 3.37 trillion into PSBs. At Rs 1.06 trillion, FY19 saw the highest capital infusion.

'RBI has given us 120 days to operationalise SFB'

'RBI has given us 120 days to operationalise SFB'

Rediff.com   29 Jun 2021

Only when we are part of the same family, which will happen down the line, then, of course, we will give them (PMC depositors) all the assurance and the comfort.'

Should RBI print money and finance govt's fiscal deficit?

Should RBI print money and finance govt's fiscal deficit?

Rediff.com   15 Jun 2021

Experts disagree with the idea and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which has the sole right to print money, is not comfortable with it as well.

Banks report loan fraud worth Rs 5 trn; SBI's amount largest

Banks report loan fraud worth Rs 5 trn; SBI's amount largest

Rediff.com   2 Jun 2021

Banks operating in India reported fraud of Rs 4.92 trillion as on March 31, 2021, which represents nearly 4.5 per cent of the total bank credit, showed Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data, which was sought under the Right to Information (RTI) Act by Saurabh Pandhare. The data showed 90 banks and financial institutions reported a total of 45,613 cases of loan fraud till March 31, 2021. State Bank of India - the country's largest lender - reported the highest amount of loans as fraud - Rs 78,072 crore as on March 31, 2021.

Stable rupee is bad news for foreign currency deposits

Stable rupee is bad news for foreign currency deposits

Rediff.com   27 May 2021

The flow of deposits from non-resident Indians (NRIs) hit a four-year low in the financial year 2020-21 mainly due to contraction in foreign currency deposits, latest data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) shows. Total NRI deposits during FY21 were $7.3 billion as compared to $8.6 billion in FY20 - the lowest since 2016-17, when such deposits had contracted by $12.3 billion. Indian banks have three kinds of deposit accounts where NRIs or PIOs (persons of Indian origin) can park their funds: non-resident external-rupee account (NRE); non-resident ordinary rupee account (NRO); and foreign currency non-resident bank account (FCNR [B]).

Covid effect: Banks prefer govt bonds to giving loans

Covid effect: Banks prefer govt bonds to giving loans

Rediff.com   20 May 2021

Record liquidity infusion by the central bank in the banking system during the financial year 2020-21 amid sluggish economic activity resulted in banks investing more in safe government papers than in extending loans, data from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed. This trend has not been seen in nearly two decades, barring 2016 - the year of demonetisation.

Why Citi is exiting India

Why Citi is exiting India

Rediff.com   10 May 2021

The Indian regulatory framework forced Citi to hibernate -- contrary to the claim that it never sleeps!

Modi era: Private banks grow; PSBs don't

Modi era: Private banks grow; PSBs don't

Rediff.com   28 Apr 2021

Since 2014, the public sector banks' branch network in rural and semi urban has grown by a mere 4,000 while for private sector banks, it doubled from 9,673 to 18,437.

'Father of banking reforms', M Narasimham, passes away

'Father of banking reforms', M Narasimham, passes away

Rediff.com   21 Apr 2021

New-generation private sector banks such as ICICI, HDFC, Axis, Kotak etcetera owe their existence to the recommendations of the first Narasimham Committee.

Govt mays block IP addresses of cryptocurrency exchanges

Govt mays block IP addresses of cryptocurrency exchanges

Rediff.com   30 Mar 2021

The government is considering blocking internet protocol (IP) addresses of companies/exchanges on which trading in cryptocurrencies is happening, said a source in the know. Two months ago, the government had said it intended to bring a Bill to ban private cryptocurrencies and introduce India's own digital currency in line with what China and other countries had done. This move is part of that. The government had also proposed to promote technology like blockchain. Industry, however, says banning decentralised currencies like bitcoin and ethereum is not possible.

Pay life insurance premium in advance and get a discount

Pay life insurance premium in advance and get a discount

Rediff.com   5 Mar 2021

The discount should be equal to interest rates on savings bank account deposit of State Bank of India.

Indians flocking to bitcoin after Elon Musk's backing

Indians flocking to bitcoin after Elon Musk's backing

Rediff.com   17 Feb 2021

Bitcoin has been on fire ever since Musk announced that Tesla had bought $1.5 billion of the cryptocurrency, and that his electric-vehicle company would accept bitcoin from buyers.

RBI's 3-pronged strategy to revive PMC Bank

RBI's 3-pronged strategy to revive PMC Bank

Rediff.com   5 Feb 2021

the three investors that have submitted their final bids are not commercial banks. Among the three, one is a non-banking financial company. Another distinctive feature of the revival is that PMC may lose its cooperative bank characteristic after its reconstruction.

How Indian banks are looking to cash in on bitcoin rally

How Indian banks are looking to cash in on bitcoin rally

Rediff.com   23 Dec 2020

Indian banks have started exploring opportunities in the space, including lending to crypto exchanges, and accepting bitcoins as collateral, among others.

Fall in gold price opens up window for investors

Fall in gold price opens up window for investors

Rediff.com   7 Oct 2020

Experts recommend buying gold as the fundamentals supporting a rally have not changed.