Breaking


Showing posts with label RBI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RBI. Show all posts

Tuesday, 17 November 2015

07:46

RBI labels agitation plan as illegal, but staffers ready to take mass casual leave says union leader

RBI labels agitation plan as illegal, but staffers ready to take mass casual leave says union leader

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) employees and officers would observe mass casual leave on November 19 pan-India despite the plan being labelled as "illegal" by the management, union leaders said.

The agitation is to protest the government's plan to take away RBI's role in public debt management and against the government's plan to increase its stake in the monetary policy committee. The employees are also demanding revision of basic pension, which remained fixed and immutable.

The United Forum of Reserve Bank Officers and Employees has declared the agitation programme and claimed that about 17,000 RBI staffers would join the agitation.

"Through this programme the entire RBI staff will express their strong opposition to systematic curtailment of functions, authority and jurisdiction of RBI now escalated by the government," said Samir Ghosh, convenor of the employee forum.

The draft Indian Financial Code suggested doing away with the RBI governor's veto power and proposed a seven member monetary policy committee to take interest rate decisions by a majority vote. Of the seven members, four are proposed to be government nominees.

"Short term political calculations of the powers that be would henceforth guide country's monetary policy instead of a long term objective which RBI have been following assiduously," Ghosh said.

This is a big shift from the current practice where the RBI governor enjoy the veto power on interest rate.

Ghosh also said that the finance ministry is giving final shape to shift government's debt management functions from RBI to the proposed Public Debt Management Agency (PDMA). This means RBI would lose some vital and related money market operations.

The RBI staff has been demanding improvement in pension scheme which prevents the periodic updation of their basic pension, unlike central government employees.

Source:bankingupdates
0
By at No comments:
Labels: , , ,

Friday, 6 November 2015

08:01

RBI includes Bandhan Bank in second schedule list

RBI includes Bandhan Bank in second schedule list

Reserve Bank today said that newly launched Bandhan Bank has been included in the second schedule list, making it eligible for loans from the central bank at bank rate.

"We advise that the name of Bandhan Bank Limited has been included in the Second Schedule to the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 with notification dated September 3," RBI said in a notification.

A scheduled bank is eligible for loans from the RBI at bank rate. They are also given membership to clearing houses.

Bandhan Bank is the first instance of a micro-finance entity in India transforming into a universal bank.

It received an in-principle approval from the RBI in April 2014 and the banking regulator's final nod on June 17, 2015.

Besides, Industrial Bank of Korea and Korea Exchange Bank Co Ltd have been included in the second schedule.
0
By at No comments:
Labels: , ,

Monday, 5 October 2015

14:43

Investment is the only way-out for Modernisation & Resource Mobilisation on IR

Investment is the only way-out for Modernisation & Resource Mobilisation on IR

Jodhpur: Investment is the only way out to address the paucity of resources in Indian Railways, which has been “plaguing” the much needed modernisation of the rail service, Union Minister Suresh Prabhu said here.

In the city to address the 91st Annual General Meeting of All India Railway Men’s Federation, the minister said that the Indian Railways has been functioning with limited resources and the government has been working hard to arrange finance for its modernisation.

He said that although the modernisation of the Indian Railways has already been affected but it has not been progressing in the “desired manner and with desired pace” for want of funds, route development, signal development, bullet trains etc.

“We are compelled to run 150 trains against the capacity of 100. We are not able to meet the freight load. All these are clear indicators of the railway being heavily under-resourced,” he said.

The Railway Minister noted that Indian Life Insurance Corporation has agreed to lend Rs 1.5 lakh crore for the rail service, with the Reserve Bank of India agreeing to cut the interest on loan by half per cent.

Identifying the development of Indian Railways with the development of the nation, Prabhu called upon the employees, who had assembled to attend the conference, to address the issue of corruption.

He said that the practise of travelling without tickets was eroding the revenue of the Indian Railways and the ministry had launched a campaign to discourage the practise in order to plug the revenue leak.

Referring to rail safety, Prabhu called upon the railway employees to work in unison to ensure safety and informed that a safety drive would be launched.
0
By at No comments:
Labels: , , ,

Sunday, 23 August 2015

11:22

Jaitley to inaugurate Bandhan Bank in Kolkata today

Jaitley to inaugurate Bandhan Bank in Kolkata today

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will inaugurate the commercial banking operations of the Bandhan Financial Services (BFS) here today.

The inaugural event will take place at the Science City Auditorium.

The Kolkata-based BFS got Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approval to start commercial banking operations last year.

The launching of commercial banking services will allow 500 BFS branches to start functioning across the country.

BFS Chairman cum Managing Director Chandrasekhar Ghosh was quoted, as saying that BFS follows a philosophy of respecting each customer and meeting their needs, regardless of their financial position.

As per RBI guidelines, Bandhan will now merge its micro-finance business with the bank. (ANI)

Source:webIndia123.
0
By at No comments:
Labels: , , ,
11:03

Payments bank license to promote massive digital transactions: Mukesh Ambani

Payments bank license to promote massive digital transactions: Mukesh Ambani

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani on Friday said the payments bank license issued to its joint venture with the State Bank of India (SBI) will promote massive adoption of digital transactions with low cost access.

"The payments bank is integral to RIL's digital initiative in a rapidly converging world of telecom, internet, commerce, media and financial services. This is one of our many initiatives to contribute meaningfully to the government of India's ambitious Digital India programme," said Ambani in a statement.

RIL said the payments bank will function in conjunction with JioMoney, a prepaid payment instrument of Reliance Jio, to facilitate cashless payments across multiple-use cases and build India's largest digital merchant network.

RIL and SBI applied for payments bank license in which RIL is the promoter and SBI the joint venture partner with an equity investment of up to 30 percent.

SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya said the partnership is the "first-of-its-kind public private partnership (PPP) to make India's financial services digitally smart".

"SBI's vast experience in structuring financial products for different customer segments will be combined with the digital access provided by RIL in completing the most efficient, simple and affordable delivery model with utmost focus on financial inclusion," the statement cited her as saying.

On Wednesday, the Reserve Bank of India granted payments banks license to 11 entities - Aditya Birla Nuvo, Airtel M Commerce Services, Cholamandalam Distribution Services, Department of Posts, Fino PayTech, National Securities Depository Ltd, RIL, Dilip Shantilal Shangvi of Sun Pharma (who applied in personal capacity), Vijay Sekhar Sharma, Tech Mahindra and Vodafone M-Pesa - saying these had the reach and technological and financial strength to serve the numerous excluded customers across the nation.

Source :webindia123
0
By at No comments:
Labels: , , , , ,

Friday, 7 August 2015

07:40

Railway Ministry convenes a meeting of Financial Institutions to sensitize the finance community of emerging investment opportunities in the Railway Sector

Railway Ministry convenes a meeting of Financial Institutions to sensitize the finance community of emerging investment opportunities in the Railway Sector 

Following up on the Banks’ & Financial Institutions’ Conclave held in Delhi on 21st July 2015, the Ministry of Railways are convening a meeting in Mumbai tomorrow i.e. on 7th August, 2015 with representatives of Financial Institutions to sensitize the finance community of emerging investment opportunities in the Railway Sector. 

The meeting of senior Railway officials with Heads and CEOs of FIs & a few corporates is being organized at the initiative of the Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu who had in his maiden Railway Budget unveiled massive investment plans for strengthening and modernizing the key Railway infrastructure in the country. 

Shri Suresh Prabhu, Chairman, Railway Board and Financial Commissioner, Railways are scheduled to address the meeting. 

The Railways’ conclave with major Banks & Financial Institutions in New Delhi on July 21, 2015, the first of its kind in the Indian Railways’ long history, which was well received by the financing community. Minister of State for Finance Shri Jayant Sinha and Dr. Raghuram Rajan, Governor, RBI had addressed the conclave. 

The meeting is being held in Mumbai this time to increase exposure and visibility to the investment plan of Railways. The Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) which is the financial intermediary for the Railways is co-hosting the meeting. 

Source :PIBNEWS.
0
By at No comments:
Labels: , , , ,

Sunday, 26 July 2015

19:58

Massive investment plans for strengthening and modernizing Railways

New Delhi: The Ministry of Railways and its PSU Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) hosted a meeting of Banks & Financial Institutions in New Delhi on July 21, 2015. The conclave was organized at the initiative of the Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu to sensitize the banking community of the opportunities and challenges offered by the Railways’ massive investment plans for strengthening and modernizing the key Railway infrastructure in the country.

Recognizing the significance of scaling up investment in Railway infrastructure in the country’s economic growth, the meeting was addressed by Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhu, the Minister of State for Finance Shri Jayant Sinha and Dr. Raghuram Rajan, Governor, Reserve Bank of India.

In his introductory address, Shri Prabhu drew attention of the Banking and Finance community of the numerous initiatives unfolded in the Railway Budget 2015-16 to modernize the system, to remove bottlenecks and to build capacity. He stated that Railways have drawn up an ambitious investment plan of Rs.8.5 lakh crore in the coming 5 years. He referred to the MOU with LIC which has assured funds of Rs.1,50,000 crore in 5 years for Railway projects. Thereafter, a detailed presentation of Railways’ investment plans was made at the meeting.

Shri Jayant Sinha, MOS (Finance) appreciated the Ministry of Railways’ plans for massive investments in the sector and emphasized the need to get the projects going without delay as the economy is poised at the profound moment between fiscal consolidation and fiscal expansion. He urged for innovation in financing and structuring.

The Governor, RBI, in his speech pointed out the long term nature of investments in Railways and the need to create appropriate structures which will withstand political and regulatory risks in the long term. Learning from the recent past, financing plans will have to provide for more equity cushion, flexible debt structures and allow for a reasonable coverage of cost overruns. He also stressed the need for developing strong technical and economic skills in Banks and FIs for project evaluation and monitoring.

Representatives from principal Banks and Financial Institutions attended the meeting. Chairman, Railway Board, Financial Commissioner and senior officers of the Railway Board were present. The heads of Railway PSUs also unveiled their investment plans at the meeting.
0
By at No comments:
Labels: , , , , , ,

Saturday, 30 May 2015

08:10

RBI allows mass transit Metro Rail operators to issue their own pre-paid cards

RBI allows mass transit Metro Rail operators to issue their own pre-paid cards

Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed to allow mass transit metro rail system operators like Mumbai Metro or Delhi Metro to issue their own pre-paid cards. As of now, the metro rail operators needs to tie-up with few banks to issue pre-paid cards which enables customer to tap and pay for transit rather than standing in long queues to buy tickets before travelling.

The draft norm issued by RBI on Thursday says that pre-paid payment instruments (PPI) by metro rail operators operators will be a new category of semi-closed PPI which will have to be authorised under Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.

Giving a rational for this, RBI said that it has been receiving requests from various segments, including providers of mass transit services, such as, metro train and road transport services, indicating the need for PPIs catering to the requirements of this segment to enhance commuter convenience. It further said that the migration of micro and small value cash payments to electronic payments can play a significant role in achieving the vision of less-cash society and metro rail operators is one such area, where a large number of small value cash payments take place.

The regulator has suggested that PPI – metro rail operators can be used at other merchants whose activities are allied to or are carried on within the premises of the transit system only.

As of now only few banks like State Bank of India (SBI) and ICICI Bank which has issued contactless card in tie-up with metro rail operators. The RBI has said that the balance in the card issued by PPI- metro rail operators should not exceed Rs 2000 at any point of time. Further, no cash out or refund may be permitted from these PPIs. The card will have minimum validity of six months from the date of issue. The new category of semi-closed PPI-metro rail operators will also be applicable for local railways and local buses who can issue their own cards enabling easy payment of small value payments.
0
By at No comments:
Labels: , , , , ,

Tuesday, 10 March 2015

22:12

IRFC banks on 3-5 year Bonds to raise up to Rs.4,000 Crore

IRFC banks on 3-5 year Bonds to raise up to Rs.4,000 Crore

Mumbai: Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC), the stateowned financier for railway projects, plans to raise up to Rs.4,000 crore by selling bonds with shorter maturities as it aims to reduce borrowing costs by taking advantage of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) falling rate cycle.

A top executive with the railways told that the triple-A rated company may launch the bond issue as early as this week. IRFC may offer 3-5 year maturities, unlike its usual bond sales with 10-15 year maturities, to raise Rs.3,000-4,000 crore, the executive said, on condition of anonymity.

According to market participants, the rates could be fixed in the range of 8.15-8.20%. “There is no point in paying more than 8% rate for 10 years, especially when interest rates are trending downward,” the executive said. “Rather, IRFC can go for shorter maturities below five years and refinance the same periodically at lower rates.”

Issue arrangers may meet the company on Tuesday. In less than two months, RBI has cut the benchmark policy rate by 50 basis points, marking the beginning of the much-expected lower interest rate regime.

IRFC was mandated to raise around Rs.12,000 crore this financial year compared with Rs.14,942 crore a year ago. The company has already collected close to Rs 8,000 crore. In 2015-16, it has targeted to mop up 47% higher funds at Rs.17,655 crore as the Indian Railways proposes to expand operations. The issuer has apparently better asset liability management that allows some leeway to go for relatively short-term borrowings. Its average borrowing duration is about nine years while the average repayments are of the same.

Moreover, it may obtain some equity infusion from the railway ministry to shore up the capital base, market sources said. Unlike other state-owned financiers such as Rural Electrification Corporation, IRFC does not hit the market frequently, but occasionally with a larger size. “IRFC enjoys a premium in the market being a quasisovereign security,” said Shashikant Rathi, head, investments and capital markets, Axis Bank.

IRFC had last raised Rs.2,625 crore in January, offering 2.3 year bonds at 7.83% with 15 months call and put option, which ensures an investment exit route before the maturity.

Short-bond maturities will serve the issuer good on two counts by helping it bring down borrowing costs in a softening interest rate cycle, as the company can always refinance its funds needs periodically. It will also attract FII investments at finer rates due to their bulk buying, dealers said.



0
By at No comments:
Labels: , ,