01.02.2024 : Today’s Banking / Financial News at a Glance
? Bank of Baroda’s third-quarter net profit up 19 per cent at ₹4,579 crore : Bank of Baroda (BoB) reported a 19 per cent year-on-year (yoy) increase in third-quarter standalone net profit at ₹4,579 crore, against₹3,853 crore in the year-ago quarter. The public sector bank’s bottomline was supported by a sharp decline in provision for non performing investments, write-back in provision for standard advances, and lower tax provisions even as net interest income (NII) nudged up and other income declined. NII (difference between interest earned and interest expended) moved up about 3 per cent y-o-y to ₹11,101 crore (₹10,818 crore in the year-ago quarter). Other income, comprising fee-based income, treasury income and other non-interest income, declined about 21 per cent y-o-y to ₹2,810.5 crore (₹3,552 crore). – Business Line
? Punjab & Sind Bank Q3 net profit drops 69 pc to Rs 114 crore : State-owned Punjab & Sind Bank on Wednesday reported a 69 per cent decline in its net profit to Rs 114 crore for the third quarter ended December 2023. The Delhi-headquartered bank had earned a net profit of Rs 373 crore in the same quarter a year ago. Its total income increased to Rs 2,853 crore during the quarter under review against Rs 2,245 crore in the same period last year, Punjab & Sind Bank said in a regulatory filing. The interest income rose to Rs 2,491 crore against Rs 2,107 crore in the year-ago period. On the asset quality front, gross non-performing assets (NPAs) declined to 5.70 per cent of the gross loans by the end of December 2023 from 8.36 per cent a year ago. Similarly, net NPAs or bad loans came down to 1.80 per cent from 2.02 per cent at the end of the third quarter of the previous fiscal. – mnoneycontrol.
? New IMPS rule likely from February 1: Transfer money with mobile no., bank name; No IFSC, beneficiary details required : Going forward, all you need is a mobile number and the bank name of the receiver to transfer money online, said the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). Soon, you can transfer up to Rs 5 lakh from one bank account to another without adding a beneficiary. The NPCI had requested all members to comply with its order for initiating and accepting fund transfers through mobile numbers and bank names on all IMPS channels by January 31, 2024, as per the circular. As the last date is here, banks are expected to allow this fund transfer facility from February 1, unless there is an extension. – economic times.
? RBI orders halt on Paytm Payments bank transactions : The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has directed Paytm Payments Bank to cease all deposits and credit transactions after February 29, 2024. This action stems from persistent non-compliances and ongoing supervisory concerns within the bank, raising questions about the impact on its customers. Starting from the specified date, Paytm Payments Bank customers will face restrictions on several key transactions. No further deposits, credit transactions, or top-ups will be allowed in customer accounts, prepaid instruments, wallets, FASTags, or National Common Mobility Cards. However, customers can still withdraw funds from their accounts, but certain services, including fund transfers and UPI facilities, will no longer be available. – Economic Times.
? RBI lens on bank business models for underlying risks : With asset quality and capital adequacy of the banking system seeming comfortable at a systemic level, the banking regulator’s focus has increasingly shifted gears to assessing the long-term stability and sustainability of business models adopted by banks. In fact, in the recently concluded financial stability review process internally conducted by the central bank, business models of banks were analysed extensively on these parameters. – Business Line.
? Fino Payments Bank’s Q3 net profit up 19% to ₹22.8 crore : Fino Payments Bank reported a 19 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) increase in third quarter net profit at ₹22.8 crore against ₹19.1 crore in the year-ago quarter. Other income increased by about 15 per cent y-o-y to ₹331 crore (₹289 crore in the year-ago quarter). Other income includes fees and commission earned from current account ft savings account (CASA), micro-ATMs and Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS) transactions, domestic remittances, issuing of debit cards, third party products including insurance and gold loans, business correspondent banking and cash management services.- Business Line.
? Indel Money eyeing strong pan-India presence : Indel Money Ltd, a non-banking finance company primarily focussing on the gold loan space, plans to have a strong pan-India presence by the next fiscal and will enter new regions in the next 2-3 quarters. The Kerala-based company, which has launched a ₹200-crore NCD issue which will close on February 12, has about 270 branches with a significant presence in the southern region. The company is gradually expanding its branch network and Tier-2 and Tier-3 locations will be its focus areas. It is in the process of opening 70 more branches before the end of this fisca. “We are currently operating in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Andhra, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. In this quarter we would be entering Gujarat and Andamans,” Umesh Mohanan, Executive Whole-Time Director, Indel Money, told businessline. – Business Line.
? Daughter wins health insurance claim fight against LIC after 8 years, to get Rs 1.6 lakh as against Rs 17,100 paid by the insurer : The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) was ordered by the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) to pay Rs 1,60,812 after an 8-year-long battle with a ‘Jeevan Arogya’ insurance policy holder. LIC Jeevan Arogya is a health insurance policy that covers certain specified health risks and provides support in times of medical emergencies. The primary reason for such an extended battle between the insurance behemoth and the policyholder was because LIC officials considered the surgery the policyholder was making a claim for was a non-major one and hence paid a smaller amount. They contended that despite the policyholder incurring Rs 2,16,827 for her father’s hernia operation, she was eligible for only Rs 17,100 insurance claim. – economic times
? Bandhan Financial Holdings in final stages of taking control of Aegon Life Insurance : Bandhan Financial Holdings is in the final stages of taking control of Aegon Life Insurance. The holding company of Bandhan Bank has received the final approval on the acquisition from the Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority (Irdai) earlier this week, two people familiar with the matter told ET With this, all regulatory approvals for the proposed acquisition are in place. Bandhan received the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) go-ahead four weeks ago. “We expect the change of control to take effect in the coming weeks from Aegon and Bennett, Coleman & Co. (BCCL) to the Bandhan Group,” Karni Singh Arha, managing director, Bandhan Financial Holdings, told ET. – economic times
? Transmission of policy rates better in deposits than loans : Transmission of policy rates improved more for deposits than loans in December. But the 250 bps hike in policy rates are not fully transmitted by the commercial banks since the Reserve Bank of India started raising policy rates from May 2022. The central bank may not act in a hurry for any further policy action. While weight average deposit rates rose for both fresh as well as outstanding deposits, only weighted average lending rates on outstanding deposits rose in December according to the latest data released by the Reserve bank of India. The weighted average lending rate (WALR) on fresh rupee loans of commercial banks stood at 9.32 per cent in December 2023 from 9.41 per cent in November 2023.- economic times
? RBI tells banks to improve effectiveness of tech solutions for compliance ; After assessing banks’ use of technology solutions for internal monitoring of compliance with regulatory norms, the Reserve Bank of India has recommended ways to enhance effectiveness, advising lenders to make necessary changes by June 30, 2024. “The review brought out that automation of the compliance monitoring process in SEs (supervised entities) remains a work in progress with various aspects of this function being carried out with significant manual intervention,” the RBI said on Wednesday. – economic times
? Star Health net profit rises 38% to ₹290 cr in Q3 : Star Health and Allied Insurance Co. Ltd has reported a 38 per cent rise in profit after tax at ₹290 crore for the quarter ended December 30, 2023, as against a PAT of ₹210 crore in the year-ago period. Operating profit increased to ₹277 crore (₹241 crore). Underwriting profit in Q3 of this fiscal was lower at ₹114 crore , when compared with ₹125 crore in the December 2022 quarter. Its total income stood at ₹3,456 crore, as against ₹2,983 crore. The Chennai-headquartered standalone health insurer’s gross written premium (GWP) increased by 16 per cent to ₹3,606 crore, as against ₹3,097 crore in Q3 of FY23. Retail health premium at ₹3,106 crore was up 16 per cent on that in the same previous period. – Business Line.
? Pension fund regulator invites bids for selection of system integrator for compliance e-platform ; Pension regulator, the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), has invited bids for selection of System Integrator (SI) for Design, Development, Implementation and Maintenance of PFRDA-Trace (Tracking Reporting Analytics & Compliance E-Platform). The last date for submission of bids is March 11. PFRDA-TRACE is the second phase of the Technology Architecture (TARCH) project, and PFRDA is selecting a System Integrator (SI) vendor specifically for this module. The System Integrator will be responsible for studying existing processes, proposing improved workflows, and providing design, development, customisation, implementation, and maintenance services for PFRDA-TRACE. The successful bidder will play a crucial role in PFRDA’s digital transformation journey. – Business Line.
? LIC closes above IPO price for first time since listing : Shares of Life Insurance Corporation closed above the IPO price for the first time on Wednesday since its listing in May 2022. The stock closed at ₹949.75 on both the NSE and the BSE, a tad above the IPO price of ₹949. Though the stock moved above the allotment price of ₹904 (for retail investors) and ₹889 (policy holders) a few days back, it managed to close above ₹949 — the allotment price for HNIs and institutions — only today. With this, all investors can heave a sigh relief, as their investment turned positive after one-and-half years.- Business Line.
? RBI’s digital payments index jumps to 418.77 in Sept from 395.57 in Mar : The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Digital Payments Index, a measure of the extent of digitisation of payments across the country, increased to 418.77 in September 2023 from 395.57 in March 2023. “The RBI-DPI index has increased across all parameters and was driven particularly by growth in payment enablers, payment performance, and consumer centricity across the country over the period,” the central bank said in a release. – Business Standard
? Bank fraud: ED raids in J-K, Punjab, UP in Bharat Papers Ltd case : The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday raided locations in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh in a Rs 200 crore alleged bank loan fraud case linked to the Bharat Papers Ltd. (BPL), official sources said. At least nine premises in these regions are being searched by the central agency under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Incorporated in September, 2006, the BPL is an associate of the Bharat Box Factory Industries Limited (BBFIL), a paper board packaging industry based in Jammu and Ludhiana. The primary allegations against the company are that its directors have perpetrated a bank loan fraud of about Rs 200 crore with a consortium of banks with lead bank as the State Bank of India. The other banks include J&K Bank, PNB and Karur Vysya Bank.- Business Standard
? Sensex climbs 612 pts; Nifty settles above 21,700; Dr Reddy’s, Eicher Motors top gainers : Sensex, Nifty updates on 31 January 2024: Benchmark equity indices climbed nearly 1 per cent on Wednesday on buying in HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries. Investors are eyeing the two important events lined up ahead — the interim budget and the US Fed interest rate decision — to derive further cues from. Recovering all the early lost ground, the 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 612.21 points or 0.86 per cent to settle at 71,752.11. During the day, it zoomed 711.49 points or 1 per cent to 71,851.39. The Nifty climbed 203.60 points or 0.95 per cent to 21,725.70. Among the Sensex firms, Sun Pharma, Tata Motors, State Bank of India, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti, Bajaj Finserv, Power Grid and UltraTech Cement were the major gainers. Larsen & Toubro declined over 4 per cent after its December quarter earnings. Titan also ended lower from the 30-share pack – Business Line.
? Rupee rises 6 paise to close at 83.04 against US dollar ; The rupee appreciated 6 paise to 83.04 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday, supported by a firm trend in domestic equities. Market participants remained cautious ahead of the interim Budget, scheduled to be presented on February 1, traders said, adding that a strengthening American currency in the overseas market also capped the sharp gain in the local unit. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 83.11 against the greenback. The unit hit an intraday low of 83.12 and a high of 83.01. – Business Line..
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