In a bid to stop stop micro-finance institutions (MFIs) from charging usurious rate of interest, the Finance Ministry has asked state-owned banks to ensure that such institutions do not charge a loan rate of above 24 per cent.
Banks in India are expected to cut lending rates by up to 50 basis points by September as there is sufficient liquidity in the system.
Banks, the biggest component of the Indian equity market, are now trading at a big discount to the benchmark indicesThe BSE Bankex index, which tracks the share price of the 10 top listed banks, is trading at a trailing price to earnings (P/E) multiple of 15.3X, nearly a 40 per cent discount to the BSE Sensex current P/E of 24.37X. This is the biggest valuation gap between the two indices in at least 10 years. Similarly, the BSE Bankex price to book ratio (P/B) of 2.22X is 40 per cent lower than the current Sensex P/B ratio of 3.61X.
After all, India is the only one among the BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India and China) where lending rates are still ruling at their 2008 peaks.
The number of frauds in the banking sector during the first half of the current financial year has increased substantially to 14,483 cases, although the amount involved is only 14.9 per cent of the previous year's amount, according to a RBI report. The report on Trend and Progress of Banking in India 2022-23, underlined the need to protect the banking system and the payments system from the risks of fraud and data breaches emanating from cyber threats. As many as 14,483 frauds were reported involving an amount of Rs 2,642 crore in the first half of current financial year, as compared to 5,396 cases (Rs 17,685 crore) in the same period a year ago.
ICICI Bank on Saturday said its March quarter consolidated net profit grew 18.5 per cent to Rs 11,672 crore, helped by lower provisions. On a standalone basis, the second largest private sector lender showed a 17.4 per cent growth in its profit after tax at Rs 10,708 crore for the reporting quarter against Rs 9,122 crore in the year-ago period. For fiscal 2023-24, its standalone net profit grew to Rs 40,888 crore from Rs 31,896 crore a year ago.
State Bank of India hinted at lowering lending rates to retail customers.
Deloitte India on Friday said it estimates India's GDP growth at 6.6 per cent in the current fiscal helped by consumption expenditure, exports rebound and capital flows. In its India's economic outlook report, Deloitte said the rapid growth of the middle-income class has led to rising purchasing power and even created demand for premium luxury products and services. With the expectation that the number of middle-to-high-income segments will be one in two households by 2030/31, up from one in four currently, we believe this trend will likely become further amplified, driving overall private consumer expenditure growth, it said.
The base rate, or the minimum lending rate, of HDFC Bank will become 9.8 per cent from the existing 10 per cent, sources said.
RBI has invited case studies from participant banks by January 31.
Asian Development Bank will double its annual assistance to over $2 billion and is expected to lend India $7.3 billion in the next three years.
The Hinduja group is learnt to be looking at alternative means of financing, including private credit, to fund its Rs 9,661 crore all-cash offer to acquire Reliance Capital. The regulator, Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority of India (Irdai), had earlier rejected the collateral offered by the group to raise funds. The Hinduja group was in talks with Barclays, JPMorgan, Cerberus Capital Management and Apollo Global Management to raise up to $850 million.
After joining the Congress, Rahul Kaswan said he felt his "voice was not being heard" in the party.
Banks to lower rates shortly; RBI cuts CRR by 25 bps and signals easier policy in October
Banks to lower rates shortly; RBI cuts CRR by 25 bps and signals easier policy in October
If Indian companies were people, around 20 per cent of the listed space would be individuals whose salaries don't cover their loan instalments.
In the battle for 2024, the place is hogging the limelight, primarily because of Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav, who according to some opinion polls, may turn out to be the dark horse when votes are counted on June 4.
Shelters -- a Citibank NA associate is looking for Relationship Officers -- Business Loans to market their business lending products.
Concerned at the declining industrial growth, industry chambers on Thursday suggested that lending rates should be brought down to single-digit levels.
The film's focus lies in humanising a larger-than-life star and breaking down his celebrity, aimed at a simplistic takedown of the 'superstar' myth, observes Arjun Menon.
Why is the RBI harsh on Paytm Payments Bank? Why did it give Rana Kapoor of Yes Bank Ltd such a long rope?Often, it's a long investigation process, but the RBI doesn't discuss this openly since that can threaten financial sector stability, explains Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Operating margins have been the primary driver of corporate earnings in India in recent quarters, despite revenue growth suffering from weak consumer demand. Companies across sectors have reported a sharp improvement in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) margins over the past two years, benefiting from lower commodity and energy prices. Higher margins more than compensated for slower revenue growth, resulting in double-digit growth in net profit for five consecutive quarters.
The top 50 exposures, amounting to Rs 7.8 trillion, of government-registered non-banking financial companies (G-NBFCs) constitute about 40 per cent of corporate credit within the NBFC sector, indicating concentration risk, according to the Reserve Bank of India's report "Trend and Progress of Banking in India 2022-23". Notably, all the 50 are tied to the power sector, a domain fraught with inherent challenges, the report said. The report highlighted recognising the escalating systemic importance of G-NBFCs, the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework had been expanded to include G-NBFCs excluding those falling within the base layer.
If this teaser picture from their song Leke Prabhu Ka Naam in Tiger 3 is any indication, the answer is a big fat YES!
The Boy And The Heron offers a thrilling joyride inside Hayo Miyazaki's unquantifiable imagination, applauds Sukanya Verma.
Sanju Samson, then a skinny 14-year-old, curled on the bed in his hotel room, watched Kolkata Knight Riders' Brendon McCullum hammering a 73-ball 158 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the first-ever IPL match.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) plans to impose stricter limits on how much a bank can lend to a single corporate group, a move aimed at curbing risk in the banking sector at a time when bad loans are on the rise.
The move comes at a time when four foreign banks - Standard Chartered, Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, American Express and Citibank -- have moved the Supreme Court with a special leave petition and the hearing for admission of SPL is on September 8. The committee is, however, expected to wait till the Supreme Court decides on the issue before finalising its recommendations. The committee is, however, expected to wait till the Supreme Court decides on the issue.
Country's premier home loan financier, Housing Development Finance Corporation on Tuesday slashed its lending rates by 0.5 per cent effective.
RBI may also be open to injecting liquidity through open market purchases of bonds but is resisting relaxing capital buffers for banks.
HDFC Bank's January-March quarter result, which came in-line with expectations, failed to enthuse investors. The reason? The management's decision to abstain from providing any specific growth guidance, and analysts' expectations of an arduous road to recovery. Analysts believe the path to normalisation of several growth metrics is unlikely to be a straightforward one, and the road to balance sheet realignment may be long.
Another season of these legal antics would be welcome, applauds Deepa Gahlot.
Bankers expect credit to pick up after Jan 15.
The Reserve Bank of India's latest order prohibiting Bajaj Finance from sanctioning and disbursing loans under its 'eCOM' and 'Insta EMI Card' products may not have serious implications on the non-banking finance company's profitability, provided the ban is lifted within six to eight weeks, analysts said. "In a surprise move, the RBI has asked Bajaj Finance to stop sanction and disbursal under two of its digital lending products. "While the move is negative, the speed of correction will be key to reinstate products," global brokerage Jefferies said in a report.
Fintech companies believe that the impact of Reserve Bank of India's order last week on unsecured loans will be visible in six to 12 months and prompt them to diversify and strengthen their secured portfolio. Fintechs which source funds through banks or non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) are looking at quickly building their secured portfolio options to at least 40 per cent of their total portfolio. "Over the medium to long term, as part of our product strategy, we are evaluating secured products which can be enabled over a digital platform" said Yogi Sadana, the founder of Zype, a lending-focussed fintech.
Pratik Gandhi's emotional range makes him a treat to watch while Vidya is as wild as she's wise, observes Sukanya Verma.
Aamir Khan made sure to invite stars, young and old, at the wedding reception of his daughter Ira and Nupur Shikhare.
'When I saw Poacher, I couldn't stop watching it! It's a binge and how!'
Interest rates are not expected to go up immediately even as the Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday announced a fresh 25-basis-point hike in the cash reserve ratio (CRR), the amount of cash banks must keep with the central bank, in its Annual Policy Statement for 2008-09. The impact is, however, expected to be marginal as bankers talked about keeping lending rates stable for the time being due to sufficient liquidity in the system. The move will absorb around Rs 8,000 crore.
