India's largest PSU bank, State Bank of India, delivered excellent results, once the impact of a big jump in employee expenses was adjusted for. The net interest income (NII) beat the Street due to a better net interest margin (NIM) and good loan growth. The credit growth at 5.2 per cent quarter-on-quarter (Q-o-Q) (15 per cent year on year) was excellent for a large bank.
An app by the bank lets customers carry out a slew of banking functions via the social media site.
Outgoing SBI chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara on Saturday said the country's largest lender's net profits in the past four years under him have been higher than the cumulative figures for 64 years before that. However, Khara rued that the bank having a huge network of over 22,000 branches, and ammunition in terms of reserves and product suite, is not getting the "right value".
Conversion of debt of the stressed telecom player Vodafone Idea Ltd (VIL) into equity could be an option to emerge out of the crisis, lenders led by State Bank of India (SBI) have suggested to Department of Telecommunications (DoT). DoT had called senior bank officials on Friday to discuss the stress in the telecom sector arising out of the Supreme Court order last month on the adjusted gross revenue (AGR)-related dues payable by telecom majors, including Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel, sources said. The top court has given a time period of 10 years to telecom service providers struggling to pay Rs 93,520 crore of AGR-related dues to clear their outstanding amount to the government.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday commended Indian financial sector regulators for doing a "world-class job" and bringing greater transparency into the system. Underlining that she is not against questioning or critiquing regulators, Sitharaman said there is a need to be "extremely conscious" about contributions made by them as well. Speaking at the Financial Express Best Banks Awards, the finance minister said, "I strongly recommend that facts are taken on board before we discuss anything to do with the regulators, strictly speaking."
The PM has assets worth Rs 2.5 crore including a residential plot in Gujarat's Gandhinagar, fixed deposits of Rs 1.27 crore and Rs 38,750 cash in hand.
Overall, small savings have amassed Rs 1.17 trillion from April-September - 26 per cent more than the previous year. But in those six months, the economy lost 24 per cent in the first three months, and is slated to lose 10 per cent in the second quarter.
With a slew of banks alluring customers with 6 to 7 per cent annual return -- instead of the staid 3 to 4 per cent -- on savings account deposits, customers are confused if they should switch their account to these banks. Salil Dhawan of Investment-mantra suggests you should not.
Fraudulent emails exhorting people to deposit cash for reward are on the rise.
In a big relief to people and small businesses, the Reserve Bank of India on Monday announced lifting of restrictions on daily withdrawal of money from ATMs and from current accounts but the weekly limit of Rs 24,000 on savings bank accounts will continue.
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.
Investors should view any bounce-back in bank stocks as an opportunity to exit the pack, analysts suggested, as the worst may not be over yet. The recent quarterly results of HDFC Bank and Axis Bank disappointed the Street, triggering a marketwide selloff by foreign institutional investors, especially in banking counters. While HDFC Bank, which was the anchor for the market correction during the past week, ended 2 per cent higher amid short covering on Wednesday, Axis Bank's shares settled 3 per cent lower.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said the National Rural Livelihood Mission has achieved remarkable success by mobilising rural women into 1 lakh SHGs (self help groups).
The ministry of finance on Tuesday clarified that public sector banks (PSBs) have intimated they are not going to raise bank charges in the near future in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ministry's statement comes after several media reports citing steep increase in service charges by certain PSBs surfaced. No service charge is applicable on the 60.04 crore Basic Savings Bank Deposit (BSBD) accounts, including 41.13 crore Jan Dhan accounts opened by the poor segments of the society, as per the statement.
Encouraging domestic financial savings through focused measures would help mobilise long term resources for funding infrastructure and economic development.
Transiting from "survival mode", which took most of the management time in FY21, the bank has been able to take a long-term view in terms of growth and preparing technology in the past 12 months.
Also on the cards could be the first interest rate reduction in nine months.
While Paytm (One97 Communications) is not completely past regulatory hurdles, its share price has gained in the last month or two. The Paytm handle migration is complete along with FDI clearance necessary for the Payment Aggregator (PA) license. UPI consumer data indicates stable market share, and expansion in partner networks in financial distribution. All this implies Paytm could be set to meet guidance of turning Adjusted Ebitda breakeven by Q4FY25 (ex of UPI-incentives).
The markets' recent behaviour has put most investors in a quandary.
rediffGURU Samkit Maniar answers readers' personal income tax queries.
Nobody is held accountable for lapses, no matter how badly it affects the person or business whose accounts are frozen. Nor is there compensation for losses. Most people get to know their accounts are blocked only when a cheque bounces, points out Debashis Basu.
'With tuition fees for international students rising, education loans have become critical for bridging the gap between savings, scholarship, and full cost.'
In case the third party fraud is reported after a delay of four to seven working days, the customer will face liability of up to Rs 25,000.
rediffGURU T S Khurana answers readers' personal income tax queries
'I am optimistic about the Budget because of the fiscal discipline the government has committed to.'
If the gift is received from a relative, there is no tax implication. But if the gift is received from a non-relative and exceeds Rs 50,000 in value during a financial year, the entire value of the gift is taxable.
ICICI Bank reported good results for the October-December 2023 quarter (Q3), with 24 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth in profit after tax (PAT). Net interest margin (NIM) dropped 10 bps quarter-on-quarter (Q-o-Q) to 4.43 per cent. Credit growth was at 19 per cent Y-o-Y (4 per cent Q-o-Q), while deposit growth was at 19 per cent Y-o-Y (3 per cent Q-o-Q).
It is advisable to file your ITR right away and not rely on potential extensions.
India's financial sector is dominated by large government-owned and private-sector banks.
'Women' as a political constituency appears to be an idea that has come of age. It is changing India in ways that we only dimly understand, asserts Aditi Phadnis.
'There has been a change in the advances mix, with the share of corporate loans decreasing.'
The share of low-cost money in total deposits continued to take a knock at the close of FY23 as banks engaged in intense competition by offering higher interest rates on term money to garner funds amid tight liquidity conditions. The share of current accounts and saving accounts (CASA) in total deposits declined by 2-4 per cent by end of March 2023 from March 2022 figure, according to BSE filings by private banks. The ease of movement of funds on digital platforms and the deployment of money by businesses from current accounts also played a role in dwindling the share of CASA money.
Indian Bank expects recoveries to be more than slippages in this financial year, which will result in improved asset quality.
The government does not seem keen on issuing fresh gold bonds given the overall cost and rising gold prices.
Ask the question "How much cash do you need?" and the most likely answer you'll get is "As much as I can lay my hands on." What we are looking at is the liquid funds deposited in savings bank accounts and stored in cupboards and bank lockers.
'The problem is that the bubble may not only be in valuations, but also in investors' minds.'
The Rs 2,000 note withdrawal decision and response to it so far suggest that the move can help boost FY24 GDP growth to beyond 6.5 per cent estimated by the RBI, a report said on Monday. The real GDP growth for the first quarter of FY24 will come at 8.1 per cent with an upward bias and the Reserve Bank of India's 6.5 per cent estimate can also be exceeded, economists at the country's largest lender SBI said. "We expect Q1 FY24 GDP growth at 8.1 per cent with an upward bias due to the impact of Rs 2000 note withdrawal event...this reinforces our projection that FY24 GDP could be higher than 6.5 per cent, basis the RBI estimate," a note said.
Do you have financial planning queries? Ask rediffGURU Kirtan A Shah.
According to experts, 'Lakshmi' and the logo 'Godesses Lakshmi' have a lot of value in India and are the biggest driver for the Bank. Retaining the Lakshmi name and logo will help DBS.