India’s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) has put
some restrictions in its car loan segment, in a move to bring down the rising
cases of defaults. According to media reports, the bank announced that the eligibility
limit for loan issuance for salaried individual for car purchases was raised
from Rs 2.5 lakh per annum to Rs 6 lakh per annum for non-SBI bank account
holder. The limit has been raised to Rs 4.5 lakh for SBI account holder. The
report from Economic Times said that SBI has also increased the service charges
by 0.51 per cent. Analysts said that the move will directly have an impact
on sales of passenger car makers which are already reeling under high interest
costs and slowing economy. Meanwhile, the report cited a private bank executive
as saying that defaults in two-wheeler loan segment has gone up by 3-4 per cent
in last few months. The move comes at a time when Finance Ministry has been
pulling up public sector lenders to take action against defaulters and bring
down their NPAs.
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Citi successfully completes the acquisition and conversion of Best Buy's U.S. credit program
Citi announced that it successfully completed the
acquisition from Capital One Financial Corp. of Best Buy's U.S. credit card
portfolio and the conversion of the portfolio to Citi's systems. Citi Retail
Services, the premier provider of credit card products, services and solutions
for North America retailers, will manage the portfolio going forward. The
portfolio currently totals more than USD 6 billion in receivables.
"Executing a conversion of this size in less than
seven months is unheard of in the industry," said Citi Retail Services CEO
Bill Johnson.
"The success of this endeavor speaks not only to the
value we place on Best Buy as a client, but to the commitment and expertise of
our people." "The transition of Best Buy's card portfolio to Citi
Retail Services reflects our determination to provide outstanding service and
financing offers for our customers," said Mark Williams, president, Best
Buy Financial Services. "As part of this transition Best Buy will also be
able to further strengthen our customer loyalty program - which is already
among the largest and best programs of its kind." The addition of more
than USD 6 billion in receivables strengthens Citi Retail Services' position as
a leading provider of private label and co-branded card products to U.S.
retailers and their customers. The business services millions of accounts for a
number of iconic brands, including ExxonMobil, Macy's, Sears, Shell and The
Home Depot. The long-term strategic agreement between Citi and Best Buy, the
global leader in consumer electronics, was originally announced in February of
this year.
Citi does not expect the impact of the agreement,
acquisition and conversion to be material to its earnings in 2013.
Saturday, August 31, 2013
Important change on Standard Chartered Bank Charges
Message from SCB to customers:
We are happy to advise you that our new and enhanced Online Banking comes with additional security features providing a safe environment for all your online transactions. Further, we have now introduced an enhanced IVR (Interactive Voice Response system) at our Phone Banking that allows automatic identification of your open query and customized information based on your recent transactions. Also, the IVR is enabled with a call back option and the capability to provide key information on SMS. The above is designed to ensure easy access to us 24/7 at your convenience, using our Phone Banking or Online Banking.
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We have also made some key changes applicable to your account effective October 1st, 2013. Request you to please take note of the following:
^ Calls pertaining to complaints, lost/blockage of cards etc. are excluded from this charge |
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50 per callFor details on the revised charges, please click here
Should you require any assistance or clarification, please do not hesitate to contact us on our phone banking numbers or write to us at customer.care@sc.com or visit us on our website www.standardchartered.co.in
Phone Banking Numbers:
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Tuesday, August 20, 2013
CIBIL puts number over name; underlines importance of credit scores to avail loans
Credit Information Bureau India Limited (CIBIL), a credit information company, has launched its first TVC. The filmfocuses on the importance of the CIBIL TransUnion score (credit score) for individuals who seek loans and credit cards from banks.
The film created by PostScript Advertising shows instances where loan seekers are told that their applications would get delayed. One instance shows a man's home loan getting delayed, while another shows a family of three being informed that their car loan would be delayed. Another instance shows an applicant trying to impress a lady executive saying his uncle is the manager of the bank’s Guntur branch. That's when a man walks in and announces his CIBIL score (750). That's enough to attract the attention of all the staff. The film shows him being treated like a celebrity, while a voice over informs: ‘Aaj kal aage badhne ke liye naam nahin number zaroori hai’ (To move ahead these days, you need a number, not name). It urges people to log on to www.cibil.com to get their CIBIL TransUnion score, to check their eligibility should they wish to procure a loan.
On the campaign, Arun Thukral, managing director, CIBIL, said, “The CIBIL TransUnion Score and credit report have been key criteria in lending decisions in India for a large part of the last decade. Our campaign carries a simple yet compelling message. It emphasises the importance that the CIBIL TransUnion Score has in the lending process and hence, creates the possibility of providing consumers access to loans more easily. This move is bound to generate large interest from consumers given that almost every loan application in the country is evaluated using the CIBIL TransUnion Score and credit report. If someone was previously not aware if they were eligible for a loan, they can now follow our simple online process to obtain their CIBIL TransUnion Score and credit report and evaluate their eligibility just like a lender would.”
Sumira Roy, co–founder and creative head, PostScript Advertising, said, “The story relates to the hardships customers go through in getting a loan for their dream purchase. It stresses that in the financial world one is recognised by numbers rather than a name. While the world entices consumers to avail of loans with promises, we thought we should empower the person applying for a loan with crucial information that banks look for when processing the loan application and give them the added confidence in knowing the true picture.”
Harshala Chandorkar, senior VP, consumer relations and communications, added, “The philosophy that we at CIBIL embrace is: You are a product of what you have created. Being diligent with payments builds ‘reputational collateral’ and you no longer have to rely on family, connections or assistance from anybody as long as you have control of your own financial destiny. This basic philosophy was weaved in with the focus of the TV commercial which is the CIBIL TransUnion Score. Couple this thought with the fact that financial strength gives you the freedom to aspire to an education and car or home ownership and we arrived at the punch line of the commercial which is: Aaj kal aage badhne ke liye naam nahin number zaroori hai.”
Sunday, August 11, 2013
Ratnakar Bank acquires select India businesses of RBS
Mid-sized private lender
Ratnakar Bank on Friday said it has acquired British banking major RBS' business
banking, credit cards and mortgage portfolio for an undisclosed sum. The
deal comprises transfer of 1.2 lakh customers but the asset base involved was
not immediately known. All of RBS employees will be retained.
"(We have) agreed to
acquire RBS' business banking business, credit cards business and mortgage portfolio
in India, subject to approvals from Competition Commission of India," a
statement from the unlisted bank, founded in 1943, said. "Employees of RBS
associated with these businesses are proposed to be absorbed by Ratnakar
Bank," it added. The bank's head of strategy and markets, Rajeev Ahuja, said
RBS has built a high quality business rich in current accounts and added that
the transaction will help the lender fast track growth.
The Kolhapur,
Maharashtra-headquartered bank has a customer base of 5 lakh with a book of Rs. 14,500 crore. RBS has already announced plans of
reducing its footprint in the country and has already stated that it will be
holding only 10 of its branches in the country by end of 2013, down from a peak
of 31. In the statement, RBS said the sale is in line with its plans. "The
deal comprises over 1.2 lakh customers. RBS is fully committed to support
impacted customers and will be writing to inform on the next steps for
them." The British lender maintained the deal will have no impact on its corporate
and institutional business (markets and international banking) or private
banking businesses.
RBS had struck a deal to sell
its retail and commercial banking businesses to its peer HSBC, but the pact
fell as it was not cleared by the sector regulator RBI. Ratnakar Bank said the
transaction complements its existing business and would help it strengthen base
in the targeted product and customer segments. The deal will also enhance the private
lender's low-cost current and savings account deposits in a "in a very
short span of time", the statement said. The 70-year-old private lender
assured the RBS customers will continue to get all services they have been
receiving till now. Ratnakar Bank completed a second round of equity capital raising
worth Rs. 324 crore from global and domestic
investors by issuing three crore new shares in April this year, taking the
total infusion over the last two years to over Rs. 1,100
crore. PricewaterhouseCoopers were the advisors to Ratnakar Bank for the deal,
while Morgan Stanley and RBS M&IB Asia Pacific advised RBS, the statement
added.
Friday, August 9, 2013
Publicis, Omnicom set to merge to form world’s largest ad company
Paris-based Publicis Groupe and New York-based
Omnicom Group have decided to merge the two ad firms to create the world’s
biggest advertising company, according to a media report. The report said two
companies will hold equal share in the merged entity, to be known as Publicis
Omnicom Groupe, which will be led by CEOs of both the companies together. As
per an Economic Times report, the merged entity will have a combined market
value of USD 35 billion. The two companies will use the synergies of merged
firm to not only expand their market, but also negotiate for their clients
better ad rates for media placements on television, the Internet and in print.
The merged entity will also topple Londonbased WPP, which is currently the
world’s biggest ad company, amidst rising hopes that recovering economic growth
will turn around the fortunes of ad companies too. According to
Zenith-Optimedia, a researcher from Publicis, Ad spending across the globe will
probably rise 5.1 per cent next year.
StanChart's India unit operating profit up 45%
Standard Chartered Plc’s India
unit has posted a 45 per cent rise in operating
profit at $450 million in the six months ended June, on robust growth in
the income from wholesale and consumer banking streams. The operating profit for
January-June 2012 was $311 million. It posted a 17 per cent growth in income at
$927 mn, up from $790 mn a year before. The income from wholesale banking rose
20 per cent to $682 mn. Consumer banking — personal loans, credit cards and
the small and medium units segment—grew 10 per cent to $245 mn. Net
interest income improved to 3.7 per cent from 3.5 per cent.
Sunil Kaushal, regional chief executive (India and South Asia), said there was
strong underlying momentum in both businesses, driven by good client activity
levels, despite challenges in the macro environment and currency drag. As an economy,
India has had a relatively tough couple of years, with falling GDP growth and a
decline in the rupee. As the market began to slow, action was taken to reshape
the business, adjusting the risk profiles and priorities, the bank said. It
rank remains cautiously optimistic about the outlook for the second half. “We
expect the macro environment in India to remain somewhat challenging and uncertain
but, despite this, both businesses have very good momentum as we begin the
second half,” said Stanchart. With volatility in recent weeks, there might be
further moderation in demand for credit from the consumer and wholesale side,
said Kaushal. He said the bank was also cautious on growing its credit card
business, given the slowing economy and job losses. He did not elaborate.
Loan impairment charges rose to $113 mn from $105 mn. Loan impairment is up
slightly year on year but the portfolio is well diversified, well
collateralised and short in tenor. The asset quality is expected to remain
stable in the rest of the year, Kaushal said.
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