Private sector lender Axis Bank on Wednesday launched the country's first contactless wearable payment devices to allow customers make on-the-go transactions more conveniently. Announcing the 'Wear N Pay' wearable devices brand, Axis Bank said it is the first bank in India to offer such a service. The bank has partnered with Thales and Tappy Technologies to design and create these products, which are exclusively available on the Mastercard platform, it said in a release.
Banking operations at public sector banks across the country were impacted on Tuesday as the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) went on nationwide strike demanding the immediate implementation of a five-day work week.
Of the 926 bank branches, 862 branches are of various public sector banks, while 35 are HDFC branches, 10 are ICICI Bank branches and 19 are Axis Bank branches, the Reserve Bank said.
Axis Bank has strengthened its positioning -- on both the assets and liability side -- and it may be set to deliver sustained improvement in performance. The valuation gap between Axis Bank (which trades at 1.4x core book value (or BV) and peers like ICICI Bank (valued at 2x BV) is expected to narrow.
The agency's probe till now found that huge monies were transferred through RTGS transfers to some shell companies including a case where the director of such a firm was a petty labourer
Re-rating of Axis Bank's stock may continue in the near-future, believe analysts, as the risk-reward on the stock remains favourable amid healthy financials. The bullish stance comes after the Mumbai-based lender delivered a strong outperformance in the March quarter of fiscal year 2023-24 (Q4FY24) on core pre-provision profit and net profit, with improving asset quality. Axis Bank's net interest margin (NIM) expanded, against expectations, even in a tough market.
Private sector lender Axis Bank is close to acquiring Citigroup's retail banking business in India and a deal is likely to be announced soon, sources said on Wednesday. According to the sources, the deal, to be valued at $2.5 billion (about Rs 18,000 crore), will be subject to regulatory approvals. In April 2021, American banking major Citigroup announced its plan to exit from the consumer banking business in India as part of its global strategy. The business comprises credit cards, retail banking, home loans and wealth management.
Axis Bank dismisses 24 staffers, suspends 50 accounts after I-T raids
Axis Bank on Wednesday said it has completed the acquisition of Citibank's retail business in India for a final cash consideration of Rs 11,603 crore. The sale excludes Citi's institutional client businesses in India. The third-largest private sector bank said the acquisition, announced first in March last year, will not necessitate any new capital requirements and stressed that the attrition numbers on customers are much better than expected.
Latest figures for HDFC Bank aren't available.
Of these, 862 branches belong to public sector banks. Thirty-five HDFC Bank, 10 ICICI Bank and 19 Axis Bank branches would also accept advance income tax.
The High Court of Justice in London has rejected a fresh bail petition filed by diamantaire Nirav Modi, who is wanted in India in connection with the Rs 13,000 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case.
Total income of the bank improved to Rs 13,852.1 crore (Rs 138.52 billion).
US bank Citigroup on Wednesday announced the sale of its Indian consumer banking businesses, including credit cards, retail banking, wealth management and consumer loans, to private lender Axis Bank for Rs 12,325 crore, as part of its plans to exit retail operations in 13 markets.
Branch additions for most major banks in the current financial year do not correspond to the number of the past two years.
ICICI Bank has reversed its decision to raise the minimum monthly average balance (MAB) for new savings accounts in metro and urban locations to Rs 50,000, revising it instead to Rs 15,000, effective August 1. The MAB for new savings accounts in semi-urban locations has been revised from Rs 25,000 to Rs 7,500, and for rural locations from Rs 10,000 to Rs 2,500.
In the search, Rs 60 crore were found in 20 accounts of as many shell companies, an official said, adding the I-T team was scanning the records to trace the directors of these companies.
A court in Antwerp on Friday cleared the extradition of fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi, noting that his arrest by the Belgian authorities on India's request was valid, officials in the know of the development said.
'The reason is that you may not enter the branch but you want to see it near you as it establishes trust.'
Privately, many bankers admit their immediate goal is not growth but slowing the erosion of Casa deposits, reveals Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
The bail plea of fugitive diamonds trader Mehul Choksi, wanted in India in connection with over Rs 6300-crore fraud in the Punjab National Bank (PNB), has again been turned down by a court of appeal in Belgium, just ahead of his extradition hearing before a court in that country, officials said. The court rejected the appeal on strong reasons conveyed by the CBI to the Belgian prosecution that Choksi had escaped from many jurisdictions earlier as well to evade legal proceedings and may flee to another country if let out on bail, they said.
Days after cash and ornaments valued at over Rs 2.25 crore were found missing from an Axis Bank branch in Manipur's Churachandpur, criminals targeted another bank in Kangpokpi district and looted computers and other electronic items worth nearly Rs 1 crore, officials said on Friday.
'We have seen something do very well when the times are good but maybe not as well when the times are bad.'
The RBI said it had not found initial evidence of money laundering against the three banks.
Absconding diamond jeweller Mehul Choksi has been detained in Belgium following an extradition request by Indian probe agencies for his alleged involvement in the Rs 13,000 crore PNB bank loan 'fraud' case, official sources said Monday. The action against the diamantaire was taken on Saturday.
Probes come after independent journalist accuses ICICI, HDFC, Axis Bank and cites video recordings collected by him as evidence.
The ministry informed the tribunal that former head of ILFS Financial Services Ramesh Chandra Bawa withdrew/transferred Rs 1 crore and Rs 14 lakh from Axis Bank accounts in two instances which are in violation of the December 3, 2018 order of the tribunal which had frozen these accounts.
The charges would apply to savings as well as salary accounts
Private lenders like Federal Bank and Axis Bank have set up branches that have special areas for children, with books, toys and video games to keep them engaged while their parents are busy doing banking transactions.
Citi Bank on Wednesday joined the list of foreign banks that have exited the retail banking business in India as the US-based banking giant announced selling its consumer banking portfolio to Axis Bank for an estimated Rs 12,325 crore. Global banking majors such as ANZ Grindlays, RBS, Commonwealth Bank of Australia have scaled down their operations in India. In a mega-deal announcement on Wednesday, Axis Bank and Citibank said their boards have approved acquisition of Citibank's consumer businesses in India by Axis Bank.
ICICI Bank share price hits record high, ICICI Bank m-cap tops $100 billion: Shares of ICICI Bank have been on a steady uptrend, rising 30 per cent over the past one year; not far behind Axis Bank stock that surged over 34 per cent during the period. The BSE Sensex, meanwhile, is up 25 per cent, and the BSE BANKEX 22 per cent in the last one year, ACE Equity data shows. On Wednesday, June 26, ICICI Bank shares hit a fresh record high for the third consecutive day, rising 2 per cent on the BSE in the intraday trade.
Between March 2022 and September 2023, HDFC Bank added 56,310 employees.
Some of the fintechs that will get impacted include Cred, Paytm, Phonepe and Amazon Pay, among others.
Citibank on Wednesday joined the list of foreign banks that have exited retail banking business in India. Mumbai-based Axis Bank completed acquisition of Citigroup's consumer business for Rs 11,603 crore. Under the deal, Axis acquired consumer banking businesses of Citibank India, which includes credit cards, retail banking, wealth management and consumer loans.
There was no smooth surge in middle class prosperity for foreign businesses to tap into because of the Indian economy was mismanaged, argues Debashis Basu.
Thomas Ninad's bank account was defrauded of Rs 14 lakh under mysterious circumstances.
>It's not easy to predict the market. But there are at least two positive factors to back the PSU banks, explains Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Even as RBI allowed banks to charge ATM transactions beyond five in metros, the lenders are yet to restrict the number of free withdrawals for their own customers at home ATMs.
The country's most valuable lender HDFC Bank can perhaps no longer claim to be a favourite of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs). Two data indicators, both somewhat interconnected, point to this - the diminishing premium of HDFC Bank's American depositary receipts (ADRs) compared to local shares, and the ample investment opportunities available to FPIs in the domestic market. The ADR premium has shrunk to below 5 per cent, down from over 30 per cent in March 2021, and even lower than recent levels.
While law-abiding customers are harassed for KYC and have to comply with endless paperwork even to open and close accounts, DHFL could easily open nearly 260,000 fake home-loan accounts, reveals Debashis Basu.