A special Central Bureau of Investigation court in Mumbai has convicted four former bank officials in one of the multi-crore securities scam cases and sentenced them to three years imprisonment, 25 years after the scam involving 'Big Bull' Harshad Mehta came to the fore.
Exuding confidence in sustaining the tempo of credit growth, public sector bankers said on Wednesday that consolidation in the public sector bank (PSB) space has given them a robust base to scale. The privatisation of PSBs can be done through divestment of government stake to a wider base of investors without haste. There is nothing to worry about at this point (high credit offtake) as underwriting standards and risk management are much better.
While boards of both the banks had approved the merger plan, bank employees went on one-day strike protesting the move.
For effecting the amalgamation, the government would first repeal the State Bank of Saurashtra Act, 1950 and thereafter amend the SBI Subsidiary Act, 1959 to remove references to the SBS Act wherever it occurs. The new Bill, to be introduced in Parliament soon, would be called the SBI Subsidiary Bank Amendment Bill, 2008.
A statement issued by the association claimed that a total of 80,000 officers working in over 15,000 branches/offices all over the country would observe a day's strike on that day.
This will be the second merger of an associate bank with the SBI after a similar exercise with the State Bank of Saurashtra in August 2008.
This will be second such merger of State Bank of India's associate banks.
Even though staff below the officers rank is not participating in the strike, but activity in the country's largest lender and its associate banks will be affected.
There may not be any legal obstacles to the State Bank of Saurashtra's merger with the State Bank of India but it is the United Progressive Alliance's political compulsions that are holding back the deal, which is expected to pave the way for merger of the other six SBI associates with the parent. In response to the law ministry's objections, the RBI has told the government that the Centre could go ahead with the merger without any immediate legal glitches.
Earlier this month, the Union Cabinet had approved the merger of SBS with SBI. The boards of both the banks had given their approval for the merger in August last year. SBS is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the State Bank of India. The merger would be effective from the 'date as may be notified by the Govt of India in the official Gazette'.
State Bank of Saurashtra first to merge with SBI
The proposal for merger of State Bank of Saurashtra (SBS) with SBI will go before the Union cabinet, which is expected to give its nod soon.
23 year old Preeti Mehta was determined to do an MBA after her graduation. The high cost of doing an MBA did not deter her from pursuing her dreams. Here she speaks about her experience of taking an education loan and how she plans to repay the same.
Vishal Uppal beat Karan Rastogi to set up a title clash with Rohan Bopanna in National Grass Court championships
Karan Rastogi beat Sanam Singh 7-5, 6-3 to advance to the last four of the National Grass Court championship
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The Reserve Bank released a report on 'Banking Structure in India -- The Way Forward' in August 2013, which covered issues such as consolidation of large-sized banks with a view to have a few global-sized banks and the desirability and practicality of having small, localised banks as preferred vehicles for financial inclusion.
The Supreme Court says the 'whole exercise appears to be an eyewash'.
Kotak Mahindra Bank's acquisition of ING Vysya Bank is the country's first ever amalgamation of a profit earning entity post the global financial meltdown in 2008.
Employee integration and branch rationalisation are major challenges.
State Bank of India is also expected to tap the markets this year
Seeking to create a global-sized bank, the Cabinet on Wednesday gave the go-ahead to the merger plan of SBI and its five associates, a step aimed at strengthening the banking sector through consolidation of public banks.
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