Tag: Nirmala Sitharaman

Borrowers fear bank watch list, avoid govt guaranteed loans, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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The emergency credit line guarantee scheme (ECLGS ), which was a major driver of loan uptake in the first phase of the pandemic, is seeing a lacklustre response from borrowers.

The scope of the scheme which was increased to Rs 4.5 lakh crore, has seen Rs 2.7 lakh crore sanctioned as of July 2. Of this, Rs 2.1 lakh crore has been disbursed.

The ECLGS aimed to provide and government-guaranteed loans to mitigate the economic distress faced by micro, small and medium enterprises ( MSMEs) and other entities due to the Covid-induced lockdowns. The government has extended the scope of

Why tepid response

According to bankers, borrowers eligible and in need of additional have already availed of the loans in the first two rounds. Borrowers do not want to be under a watchlist for stressed loans.

The number of applicants has been dropping with the new version and bankers see fresh demand of loans during the festive season.

ECLGS 4.0

In June Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday announced a slew of measures, including Rs 1.1 lakh crore (Rs 1.1 trillion) credit guarantee scheme for improving health infrastructure, and enhancing the limit under the ECLGS by 50 per cent to Rs 4.5 lakh crore for the MSME sector facing a liquidity crunch.

Sharing the details of the stimulus package, the finance minister said this comprises eight relief measures and other eight measures to support the economic growth.

She announced Rs 1.1 lakh crore loan guarantee scheme for Covid-affected sectors, including the health sector, which includes guarantee cover for expansion or for new projects.

Besides, she said, additional Rs 1.5 lakh crore limit enhancement has been done for ECLGS.

Besides, the validity of the scheme was extended by three months to September 30 and or till guarantees for an amount of Rs 3 lakh crore are issued.

The last date of disbursement under the scheme has been extended to December 31.

Under the ECLGS 4.0, 100 per cent guarantee cover was given to loans up to Rs 2 crore to hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, medical colleges for setting up on-site oxygen generation plants.

The interest rate on these loans has been capped at 7.5 per cent, which means the banks can offer loans less than this ceiling.



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Govt extends deadline for transaction, legal advisors to bid for managing IDBI Bank sale till Jul 22, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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NEW DELHI: The government has extended the deadline for transaction and legal advisors to bid for managing the IDBI Bank strategic sale by 9 days till July 22.

The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) had on June 22 invited bids from merchant bankers and law firms for managing and giving legal advice for the sale process. The last date to put in bids was July 13.

“… The competent authority has decided to extend the bid submission date of the… tender by nine days. The last date of bid submission will now be July 22, 2021,” the DIPAM said in a notice.

DIPAM, which manages government’s equity, had also clarified to the merchant bankers that LIC’s holding in IDBI Bank would be sold along with government’s stake, but the exact quantum of stake dilution would be decided later.

The central government and LIC together own more than 94 per cent equity of IDBI Bank.

LIC, currently having management control, has a 49.24 per cent stake, while the government holds 45.48 per cent in the bank. Non-promoter shareholding stands at 5.29 per cent.

The cabinet in May had approved the strategic sale of the entire stake of government and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) in IDBI Bank.

In response to queries received from potential transaction advisors in IDBI Bank, DIPAM has clarified that since LIC’s stake would be sold along with that of the government’s, a single transaction advisor would manage the entire share sale process.

“The mandate received from CCEA is to offload up to 100 per cent stake of GoI and LIC along with transfer of management control. However, the exact quantum is yet to be worked out. It will be determined, as we go through the transaction and ascertain investors’ interest and market appetite.

“It is clarified that LIC’s stake will be sold along with GoI’s shareholding in this transaction. So there is only one transaction advisor,” it said.

The quantum of stake dilution would be declared before RFP (Request for Proposal) stage of the transaction, it added.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget for 2021-22 had said the process of privatisation of IDBI Bank would be completed in the current fiscal. The government aims to mop up Rs 1.75 lakh crore in the current fiscal from minority stake sale and privatisation.

Of the Rs 1.75 lakh crore, Rs 1 lakh crore is to come from selling government stake in public sector banks and financial institutions. Rs 75,000 crore would come as CPSE disinvestment receipts.



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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman offers CoWIN platform to other nations for free, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday offered to share CoWIN platform with other nations for free, saying that humanitarian needs outweigh commercial benefits.

Participating on the second day of the ongoing G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting, Sitharaman shared India’s successful experience in integrating technology with inclusive service delivery during the pandemic, the Finance Ministry said in a series of tweets.

“FM Smt. @nsitharaman shared how #CoWIN application has efficiently supported scale and scope of our vaccination & #India has made this platform freely available to all countries given our firm belief that humanitarian needs outweigh commercial benefits,” a tweet said.

During the meeting, discussions of finance ministers were focused on policies for economic recovery, sustainable finance and International Taxation.

“In policies for recovery session, FM discussed 3 catalysts of economic recovery- #Digitalization #ClimateAction & #SustainableInfrastructure; shared India’s successful experience in integrating technology with inclusive service delivery during the pandemic,” another tweet said.



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Bommai, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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Bengaluru: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has agreed to release funds under Karnataka‘s share of central award schemes besides the pending GST compensation, Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai said on Friday. According to him, Sitharaman assured him that a balance amount of Rs 11,800 crore GST compensation would be released. Further, the Centre will provide Rs 18,000 crore GST compensation by borrowing from the financial institutions.

The state Home Minister said he also requested Sitharaman to release the first instalment of the state’s share in the GST collected in the first quarter of the current fiscal.

The Union Minister is on a two-day visit to Bengaluru where she took part in various events.

On Friday, Bommai called on her and put forth the request, following which she gave him assurance about releasing the grants under the Central Award schemes.

Later, in a statement, Bommai said he had discussions with Sitharaman on the economic situation in the state and various schemes of the central government.

“A request was made to provide financial assistance to the State Government under various schemes by the Centre…Responding positively Nirmala Sitharaman assured to release Karnataka’s share of funds under Central schemes at the earliest.” Bommai said in a statement.

During the meeting Bommai discussed with Sitharaman the financial arrangements required for the coronavirus management and possible COVID third wave.

“In response, she assured us to ensure that there is no financial hindrance in COVID-management.” the minister said.

According to Bommai, Sitharaman hailed the Karnataka government’s COVID-19 management.



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Credit guarantee scheme for facilitating MFIs loans announced, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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New Delhi, The government on Monday announced a new credit guarantee scheme that will facilitate loans to 25 lakh people through micro finance institutions (MFIs).

The announcement was made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman as part of economic relief package provided to spur investment climate in the country affected by the Covid pandemic.

As per the new scheme, guarantee will be provided to Scheduled Commercial Banks for loans to new or existing NBFC-MFIs or MFIs for on lending up to Rs 1.25 lakh to approximately 25 lakh small borrowers.

Interest Rate on Loans from banks will be capped at MCLR plus 2 per cent.

Maximum loan tenure 3 years, 80 per cent of assistance to be used by MFI for incremental lending, interest at least 2 per cent below maximum rate prescribed by RBI.

The focus of the scheme will that lending would be for new activities and not repayment of old loans. Loans to borrowers to be in line with extant RBI guidelines such as number of lenders, borrower to be member of JLG, ceiling on household income and debt.

All borrowers (including defaulters upto 89 days) will be eligible for guarantee cover for funding provided by MLIs to MFIs/NBFC-MFIs till March 31, 2022 or till guarantees for an amount of Rs 7,500 crore are issued, whichever is earlier.

Guarantee upto 75 per cent of default amount for up to 3 years through National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC) which will also not charge any guarantee fee.

–IANS

sn/kr



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Cabinet secy-led panel holds crucial meeting on bank privatisation, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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New Delhi, Jun 27 () Inching a step closer to privatisation of two public sector banks, a high-level panel headed by the cabinet secretary recently held a meeting to thrash out various regulatory and administrative issues so that the proposal could be placed with the group of ministers on disinvestment or Alternative Mechanism (AM) for approval. Pursuant to the announcement made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her 2021 budget speech, the NITI Aayog has suggested a couple of bank names for privatisation to the Core Group of Secretaries on Disinvestment headed by Cabinet Secretary in April, sources said.

The meeting of the high-level panel deliberated on the recommendation of the NITI Aayog on Thursday June 24, sources said, adding the panel would after tying up all loose ends will send the names of the shortlisted PSU banks to AM for consideration.

Headed by the cabinet secretary, the members of the panel include secretaries in the departments of Economic Affairs, Revenue, Expenditure, Corporate Affairs and Legal Affairs, as well as the secretary of administrative department. The panel also has the Department of Public Enterprises, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) secretary as its member.

According to sources, the panel also examined issues pertaining to protection of interests of workers of banks which are likely to be privatised.

Following a clearance from AM, it will go to the Union Cabinet headed by the Prime Minister for the final nod. Changes on the regulatory side to facilitate privatisation would start after the cabinet approval.

Central Bank of India and Indian Overseas Bank are reported to be probable candidates for privatisation.

The government has budgeted Rs 1.75 lakh crore from stake sale in public sector companies and financial institutions, including two PSU banks and one insurance company, during the current financial year. The amount is lower than the record budgeted Rs 2.10 lakh crore to be raised from CPSE disinvestment in the last fiscal.

In her Budget Speech on February 1, Sitharaman had announced that the government proposes to take up the privatisation of two public sector banks (PSBs) and one general insurance company in the year 2021-22.

“Other than IDBI Bank, we propose to take up the privatisation of two public sector banks and one general insurance company in the year 2021-22,” she had said.

The government last year consolidated 10 public sector banks into four and as a result, the total number of PSBs came down to 12 from 27 in March 2017. The government has merged 14 public sector banks in the last four years.

Last year in April, the government effected the biggest ever consolidation exercise in the public sector banking space when six PSU lenders were merged into four in a bid to make them globally competitive. DP CS ANZ MKJ



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Govt kicks of IDBI Bank stake sale, but doesn’t disclose quantum, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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The government has invited bids from transaction advisors and legal firms for assisting in the strategic sale of IDBI Bank.

The Cabinet had in May given in-principle approval for IDBI Bank’s strategic disinvestment along with transfer of management control.

The central government and LIC together own more than 94 per cent equity of IDBI Bank. LIC, currently having management control, has 49.24 per cent stake, while the government holds 45.48 per cent. Non-promoter shareholding stands at 5.29 per cent.

The last date for submission of bids by both transaction advisor and legal advisors is July 13, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) said.

Transaction advisor

The transaction advisor would be required to advise and assist the government on modalities of disinvestment and the timing; recommend the need for other intermediaries required for the process of sale/disinvestment and also help in identification and selection of the same with proper Terms of Reference.

The transaction advisor will also assist in the preparation of all documents like Preliminary Information Memorandum (PIM), organise roadshows to generate interest among the prospective buyers and suggest measures to fetch the optimum value.

The advisor would also be supporting IDBI Bank in setting up an e-data room and assisting in the smooth conduct of the due diligence process.

The extent of shareholding to be divested by the central government and LIC shall be decided at the time of structuring of transaction in consultation with the RBI, the government had earlier said.

Insurance giant LIC had acquired a controlling stake in IDBI Bank in January 2019.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget for 2021-22 had said the process of privatisation of IDBI Bank would be completed in the current fiscal.

The government aims to mop up Rs 1.75 lakh crore in the current fiscal from minority stake sale and privatisation.

Of the Rs 1.75 lakh crore, Rs 1 lakh crore is to come from selling government stake in public sector banks and financial institutions, and Rs 75,000 crore through CPSE disinvestment receipts.

Under PCA

Under the PCA imposed by RBI in 2017, the bank’s balance-sheet shrank as it could not extend loans to corporates and was not allowed to open branches.

It used the four years of PCA to restructure its business, cut exposure to large loans and bulk deposits and create verticals for various lending businesses to speed up turnaround time.

The bank has worked for the last four years on various parameters, done recoveries and raised its provision coverage ratio to 97%.

The lender was looking at Rs 4,000 crore of recoveries in this fiscal.

Retail loans

The share of corporate loans, which was about 67% four years back when it went under PCR, has shrunk to 40% now with 60% loans being retail. The bank is now targeting 55% loan book as retail and rest corporate. It wants to maintain low costs retail deposits at 48% of total deposits.

As a result, the institution has transformed from a project financier to a retail lender.

The company is looking to target the mid-corporate segment and will now avoid overexposure to certain industries and grow the business in a calibrated manner.

It sees over 12% growth in retail loans and an 8-10% rise in corporate loans.



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Kerala government seeks moratorium on repayment of loans, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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The Kerala government has approached the Centre to put in place a moratorium on repayment of loans till December 31 in order to provide relief to individuals in the unorganised sector, MSMEs, agriculture and others adversely affected by COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown.

Kerala has sought a moratorium of loans without accrual of interest and penal interest during the moratorium period.

Kerala Finance Minister K N Balagopal, in a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, said the impact of the second wave induced lockdown has adversely affected the economic and social well-being of all sectors of the society.

“…it is felt that the burden of repayment of the loans taken by individuals, especially those in the unorganised sector, MSMEs and agriculturalists is particularly onerous at this time, and these sections need some relief by way of moratorium on the repayment of loans at least till December 31, 2021,” Balagopal said in a letter dated June 16.

He said the state government has taken all steps to ameliorate the hardships faced by the people, especially the vulnerable sections.

“I request your kind intervention to put in place a moratorium on repayment of loans at least till December 31, 2021 without accrual of interest and penal interest during the moratorium period,” he said in the letter.

The Finance Minister pointed out that the economy of Kerala has been under considerable stress since 2018 due to successive natural disasters including the massive floods which lashed the state wreaking havoc in most of the districts.

The outbreak of COVID-19 in early 2020 further exacerbated the stress on the economy, he added.



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Millennials are killing it… Don’t LOL, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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– By Tarika Sethia

They are not just young but their choices are too unusual. While the traditional investors are still confused over cryptocurrency, millennials have already found solace in it.

Millennials investing in crypto

Vartika, a 28-year-old girl living in Mayur Vihar, Delhi, has seen hundreds of videos on YouTube which are related to cryptocurrency investments. She has invested in bitcoin and also made some money.

“I understood what cryptocurrency is by watching videos and decided to invest in it,” she said.

Around one crore investors are holding over $ 1 billion of cryptocurrency investments in India and the majority of them are millennials.

About 62% of users at WazirX, India’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, are below 34 years of age. According to CoinDCX’s report titled ‘Mood of the Nation- 2020’, 71% of respondents below the age of 35 had invested in crypto at least once.

According to the CNBC Millionaire survey, more than 33% of millionaire investors belonging to the millennial generation have over half their wealth in cryptocurrencies. As mainstream and quotidian as it gets, it becomes essential to ask why some Indian millennials are throwing all their savings into a volatile virtual currency that they cannot afford to lose or is it just an alternate investment.

Cryptocurrency and Millennials

All these numbers shed light on the curious eyes of the millennial demography. The notion of crypto being a young person’s asset choice isn’t a farce. However, the question remains, why? While the equity markets were touching fresh lows each day during the Covid lockdown in 2020, cryptocurrencies kept rallying. It was 2020 when many began surfing the crypto wave. Work from home expanded the opportunity to do more than just work and allowed some free time to people leading to huge clamour for ‘meme’ stocks on social media. Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO) has made millennials dash for a chunk of the crypto pie.

Two things are attracting millennials towards cryptocurrencies. First, everything is digital and can be processed seamlessly on the smartphone. Second, it fetches high returns which no other asset class seems to offer.

“I have done my calculations. There are high chances that I will earn far more than what I invest,” said Syed, a 25-year-old intern in a private company.

Living in a digital world, convenience leaves millennials drooling. With copious platforms emerging for crypto trading and each one of them innovating to provide a better user experience, investing and trading has become easier. Brisk KYC to instant crypto purchases, investing in digital currency has become swift and seamless. It is the gift of having everything at your fingertip.

Millennials are not risk-averse

With skyrocketing growth and hard-hitting falls, cryptocurrencies are not for the risk-averse. Millennials are still young enough to afford risking a part of their investment into highly oscillating asset classes, as advised by financial advisors and influencers on Instagram and YouTube. This isn’t very fresh advice but has always lingered in the investment world. However, now it has welcomed a new asset class. This ideology served with the appeal of building wealth faster encourages this bracket to run towards crypto.

Cryptocurrency and regulations

Neither the government nor the regulator has taken any firm stand on cryptocurrencies yet. The crypto exchanges are trying their best to convince the regulator. While India’s central bank has clearly stated that they have issues against cryptocurrency, the Finance Ministry has a different view.

“We want to make sure there is a window available for all kinds of experiments which will have to take place in the crypto world. The world is moving fast with technology. We cannot pretend we don’t want it,” said, Nirmala Sitharaman, Finance Minister.

Cryptocurrency and Global Push
The virtual currency has been dancing over tweets and has even attracted eyeballs of governments from El Salvador to India.

The curiosity about crypto is all over the world. It reached a new high when Tesla founder Elon Musk joined the race. In fact, after a drastic fall, Bitcoin soared this week after Musk’s tweets again favour the crypto.

Moreover, the European Investment Bank (EIB) issued its first digital bond on the Ethereum blockchain, in April this year. Richard Teichmeister, the head of funding at the EIB called the blockchain technology “revolutionary”. Dogecoin that started as a meme currency shot up in value when the tech billionaire Elon Musk tweeted about it.



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Canara Bank to be lead sponsor of bad bank, to pick up 12% stake, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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NEW DELHI: State-owned Canara Bank on Tuesday said it will be the lead sponsor of National Asset Reconstruction Company Limited (NARCL) or bad bank with 12 per cent stake in the entity.

Bad bank refers to a financial institution that takes over bad assets of lenders and undertakes resolution.

“The Indian Banks’ Association (IBA), vide their letter dated May 13, 2021 requested Canara Bank to participate in NARCL as sponsor. The board of Canara Bank has given in-principle approval for taking stake in NARCL,” Canara Bank said in a regulatory filing.

Following the board nod, it said, the bank has sought the approval from the Reserve Bank of India for participating in NARCL as sponsor contributing 12 per cent stake.

Various public sector banks (PSBs) have also announced that they have earmarked a signification portion of their NPAs to be transferred to NARCL.

For example, Punjab National Bank (PNB) said that it has identified non-performing assets of Rs 8,000 crore to be transferred to NARCL.

The proposed NARCL would be 51 per cent promoted by PSBs and remaining by private sector lender.

Banks have identified around 22 bad loans worth Rs 89,000 crore to be transferred to the NARCL in the initial phase.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Budget 2021-22 announced that the high level of provisioning by public sector banks of their stressed assets calls for measures to clean up the bank books.

“An Asset Reconstruction Company Limited and Asset Management Company would be set up to consolidate and take over the existing stressed debt,” she had said in the Budget speech. It will then manage and dispose of the assets to alternate investment funds and other potential investors for eventual value realisation, she added.

Last year, the IBA had made a proposal for creation of a bad bank for swift resolution of non-performing assets (NPAs). The government accepted the proposal and decided to go for asset reconstruction company (ARC) and asset management company (AMC) model for this.

The IBA was appointed nodal agency to constitute the Asset Reconstruction and Asset Management Companies designated as NARCL and India Debt Management Company Ltd (IDMCL) respectively.



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