BoB world app fiasco: Bank MD says sacked CDO; Handa claims he resigned
While Bank of Baroda MD and CEO Debadatta Chand on Saturday said the bank has taken action against several of its staffers, including former chief digital officer (CDO) Akhil Handa, by terminating their employment after the BoB World app fiasco, Handa claims he had resigned, and the bank is just “deflecting from its operational lapses” by saying it terminated employees.

Bank of Baroda PAT rises 28% Y-o-Y on strong advances
The net profit of Bank of Baroda rose 28.4% year-on-year in July-September due to growth in its advances.

Bank of Maharashtra, Central Bank of India MDs get govt nod for tenure extension
The government has cleared the extension of tenure of managing directors of two public sector lenders – Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) and Central Bank of India.

Will go ahead with IPO if merger with AU SFB fails: Fincare Small Finance Bank CEO
The first priority of Fincare Small Finance Bank (SFB) would be to complete its proposed merger with AU SFB, but the lender also has a “Plan B” of going ahead with its initial public offering (IPO) — which was already approved by Sebi in September — if regulatory approvals do not come for the proposed merger, Fincare SFB MD, CEO Rajeev Yadav told Piyush Shukla in an interaction. Excerpts:

UCO Bank realigns growth strategy with focus on profitable corporate lending
State-owned lender UCO Bank is implementing a strategic shift in its growth plan, concentrating on the pursuit of a "profitable" corporate loan portfolio expansion while identifying retail, MSME, and agriculture as its key drivers of growth in the coming quarters. This shift in perspective concerning the bank's corporate loan portfolio coincides with the delayed rate cut expectations, attributed to global inflation and geopolitical uncertainties.

Bank of India Q2 net profit jumps 52 pc to Rs 1,458 crore
State-owned Bank of India on Saturday reported a 52 per cent jump in the net profit at Rs 1,458 crore in the September 2023 quarter.

SBI Q2 Results: Profit climbs 9.1% to Rs 16,383.18 crore, NII grows 12.27% on-year
State Bank of India (SBI) on Saturday posted profit for the fiscal second quarter at Rs 16,383.18 crore, up 9.1 per cent as against Rs 15,017.18 crore during the corresponding period of last year, surpassing estimates. According to a Bloomberg poll, SBI was expected to record a net profit of Rs 14,329 crore for the quarter ended September 2023. The country’s largest lender recorded a total income of Rs 1,44,256.12 crore, up 25.7 per cent in comparison to Rs 1,14,782.48 crore during the same period last year. 

SBI targets Rs 1.4-trn corporate loans disbursal in 2-3 quarters
State Bank of India (SBI) expects to disburse Rs 1.4 trillion worth of corporate loans in the next two-three quarters. SBI chairman Dinesh Khara told analysts that proposals which are awaiting sanctions are of around Rs 3.3 trillion.

IndusInd Bank introduces “NRI Homecoming” festival for non-resident Indians. Details here
On November 3, 2023, IndusInd Bank unveiled the “NRI Homecoming" festival, a special celebration to mark the homecoming of non-resident Indians (NRIs) reuniting with their families. This coincides with the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, the approaching year-end holiday season, and the eagerly anticipated Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in January 2024. The primary goal of this initiative is to provide a memorable experience for our clients by hosting a series of joyful events and presenting enticing deals on our banking products and services.

BoB has terminated the services of Akhil Handa: MD
New Delhi: Bank of Baroda (BoB) on Saturday said there was very insignificant and immaterial financial implication of 'bob World' on the bank. The bank has terminated the services of head digital lending business Akhil Handa as part of actions initiated following regulatory steps taken by the Reserve Bank of India, BoB managing director Debadatta Chand said while announcing its quarterly numbers.

Bank of Maharashtra top among PSU lenders in loan, deposit growth in Q2
New Delhi, State-owned Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) retained the top spot among public sector lenders in loan and deposit growth in percentage terms during the second quarter of the current financial year. The deposit and advances of the Pune-based lender posted an over 20 per cent rise, the highest by any public sector bank during the July-September period.

Most banks not big on small personal loans
Mumbai: Bank chiefs have signalled that the stress in unsecured loans is originating in fintech-driven digital lending of small-ticket personal loans — a segment in which most banks are not present. There is also an expectation that RBI may make it tougher for banks to lend to this segment (loans under Rs 50,000), which is seen as riskier.
 

Bob World curbs not denting business, says MD & CEO Debdatta Chand
It added that the loan book will grow in line with guidance for the current financial year.

Bank of Baroda's former chief digital officer Akhil Handa says he was not terminated
Bank of Baroda's former Chief Digital Officer Akhil Handa has spoken to media outlets stating that he was not terminated and had resigned from his position in August on personal grounds.

BoB classifies loans to Go First as NPA
Bank of Baroda has classified its loans to Go First as Non Performing Asset (NPA) and has fully provided for its exposure of Rs 1,200 crore towards the troubled airline which has been under insolvency proceedings since May 2023. 

Double-digit retail loan growth for SBI, BoB in Q2
Amidst growing concern over very high growth in retail loans, the country’s largest bank – State Bank of India – saw its retail loan portfolio grow by 15.7% year-on-year in the second quarter, which is very much in line with most other banks (private as well as public). 

A war of words over BoB's mobile app fiasco
A verbal spat broke out between the Bank of Baroda (BoB) management and its former chief digital officer (CDO) over the weekend around irregularities in signing up customers through its mobile banking app bob World.

Bank margins hit by higher funding costs, trend likely to continue

The impact of rising cost of deposits was felt across the banking sector leading to a squeeze in net interest margins (NIMs) for all banks in the September quarter. Analysts expect this trend to continue for some more time as competition for deposits remains strong. Unsecured loans were another talking point in the bank earnings after the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) caution post the monetary policy review last month. But lenders have been empathic that all is under control and the risks are in segments that they are not present in.

Public sector banks told to shift focus away from high-cost bulk deposits

New Delhi: The government has cautioned state-run lenders against relying on high-cost bulk deposits and advised them to focus on low-cost retail ones. The issue was flagged at a recent meeting between lenders and senior government officials, people privy to the deliberations told ET.

Canara Bank, BoB raise $800m in offshore loans

Mumbai: Domestic lenders Canara Bank and Bank of Baroda have embraced overseas funding markets over the last few weeks, with them raising up to $800 million. The deals, arranged by HSBC, mark renewed appetite for dollar funding by highly-rated Indian financiers amid hopes of US interest rates reaching a peak.

PNB, SBI, Bank of Baroda's Diwali offers on home loans, car loans

Punjab National Bank (PNB) announced a new offer called 'Deepawali Dhamaka 2023' with an aim to cash in on the Diwali 2023

SBI sets aside Rs 8,900cr for pay and pension hike to staff
 

Punjab & Sind Bank Q2 Net Down 32% y-o-y at ₹189 crore
Punjab & Sind Bank (PSB), a public sector bank, has reported a 32 per cent decline in standalone net profit for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, at ₹189 crore (against ₹278 crore in the corresponding quarter last year). The latest bottomline print was however higher than net profit of ₹153 crore recorded in June 2023 ending quarter. 

India’s neutral geopolitical dtance to help sttract FDI, Overseas Business: Claudio Irigoyen, Bank of America
India’s neutral geopolitical position has played to the country’s advantage when it comes to attracting global investment, as more and more countries direct trade towards friendly nations, Claudio Irigoyen, head of global economics research at Bank of America, tells Bhaskar Dutta in an interview. Irigoyen says the “sweet spot” for emerging markets could be the second quarter of 2024.

Edited excerpts:

Corporate lending to depend on borrowers' track record: JP Morgan's Kaustubh Kulkarni
 

Rise in 90-day delinquencies for credit cards, personal loans: TransUnion CIBIL
Mumbai: Balance-level serious delinquencies, measured as 90 dpd (days past due), improved across product categories, except for credit cards and personal loans. For consumers having at least one small-ticket personal loan, the balance-level delinquency rate was 5.4 per cent, an increase of 120 bps on year, according to the TransUnion CIBIL Credit Market Indicator (CMI) report for the quarter ended June 2023. “The latest CMI indicates financial stability with healthy retail credit growth and broadly stable delinquency levels, even though a few pockets show signs of risk build-up,” said MD and CEO Rajesh Kumar. The CMI for the quarter ending June 2023 was 100, unchanged from a year ago.

Bankers await closure of Reliance Cap acquisition by Hinduja Group
The Hinduja group is planning to raise funds from internal sources and private credit companies after the insurance regulator, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), did not allow the pledging of shares of Reliance General Insurance and Reliance Nippon Life Insurance Company. The group may look at raising by pledging shares of other group entities, said a banker. The lenders, who had an exposure of Rs 25,000 crore to Reliance Capital, had sent the company to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) for debt resolution in November 2021 after it defaulted on its loans.

Festival season-led demand drives record loan disbursals for NBFCs in October
Mumbai: The festival season-led spending and consumer exuberance is driving strong record disbursals for NBFCs, led by both consumer and MSME finance.

JM Financial Q2 Results: revenue up 38% YoY to Rs 1214 crore
JM Financial has reported a total revenue of Rs. 1214 crore during the period ended September 30, 2023, as compared to Rs. 877 crore during the same period in 2022, a growth of 38%.

PB Fintech Q2 results: Policybazaar parent's net loss narrows 89% YoY to ₹21 crore
PB Fintech, the parent entity of insurance aggregator Policybazaar, clocked a net loss of ₹21 crore in the second quarter of fiscal year 2023-24 (Q2FY24), the company informed the exchanges on November 4. This is 89 percent lower as against a net loss of ₹187 crore reported in the year-ago period.

Airpay expands its footprint to Tanzania
Airpay, an integrated financial services platform, expanded its footprint with an official launch in Tanzania. The launch, the company said, builds on the shared commitment of leveraging technology to advance socioeconomic development, as outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Tanzania. Airpay has been granted the Payment Services Licence by the Bank of Tanzania (BOT).

How to avoid scams and frauds while sending and receiving cryptocurrencies
In the digital age of finance, cryptocurrency transactions have reshaped our understanding of money, opening the door for new investment opportunities but also new types of scams. As cryptocurrency garners more mainstream attention and 7% of Indians own crypto according to the UN, knowing how to safeguard oneself from potential fraud and scams is imperative. Let’s check out a comprehensive guide on how to stay safe in the blockchain finance world.

HDFC Hybrid Debt Fund: Delivering returns with an enhanced credit profile
HDFC Hybrid Debt Fund, launched in December 2003, has consistently ranked in the top 30th percentile of the value/contra funds category in the CRISIL Mutual Fund Ranking (CMFR) for three consecutive quarters, from July to September 2023.

FPI sell-off continues, Rs 3,400 crore pulled out in just three trading sessions in Nov
New Delhi: Foreign Portfolio Investors’ (FPIs) selling spree continues as they pulled out over Rs 3,400 crore from the Indian equity markets in the first three trading sessions of November on rising interest rates and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. This came after such investors withdrew Rs 24,548 crore in October and Rs 14,767 crore in September, data with the depositories showed. Before the outflow, FPIs were incessantly buying Indian equities in the last six months from March to August and brought in Rs 1.74 lakh crore during the period. Going forward, this selling trend is unlikely to continue since the main trigger for FPI selling, the rising bond yields, has reversed on the US Federal Reserve signalling a dovish stance in its November meeting.

ICICI Prudential Multi-Asset Fund: Rs 10 lakh turns into Rs. 5.49 crore in 21 years!
ICICI Prudential Multi-Asset Fund has completed 21 years. The Scheme has an AUM of Rs. 24,060.99 crore which accounts for nearly 57% of the total AUM in the multi-asset allocation category, as per Value Research data as of September 30, 2023.

How equity funds leverage a few good months for outperformance
Financial experts have for long touted the benefits of long-term investing, especially where it concerns equity mutual funds. Yet, a large number of retail investors continue to exit the markets after a short duration. According to data from Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi), 51.4%, or more than half, of the investments held by retail investors have an average holding period of just more than two years.

What does Fed, BoE's status quo in rates mean for the global economy?
The Federal Reserve and Bank of England both left borrowing costs unchanged as they near the end of their respective tightening cycles.