Tag: pan-India

ICICI Home Finance to hire 600 people by December, BFSI News, ET BFSI

Personal Finance

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ICICI Home Finance Company on Monday said it will hire over 600 people by the end of this calendar year to cater to increasing demand for home loans. This recruitment drive across the country’s branch network in sales and credit will enable the company to cater to the increasing demand in the affordable housing segment, it said in a release.

The company’s affordable home loan products Apna Ghar and Apna Ghar Dreamz cater to home buyers who may not be in a position to furnish documents required for a home loan like ITR proof.

Service cash salaried, self-employed individuals such as shopkeepers, traders, merchants, small vegetable and fruits vendors, drivers, small kirana shopkeepers, electricians, carpenters, computer operators, machine operators, as well as, salaried individuals working in industries and the government sector can take benefit of these loan products.

“We see growth opportunity in affordable housing segment across 530 plus locations we are present in. Our pan-India recruitment drive will aid our growth plans as we focus on hiring local talent for our branches,” Anirudh Kamani, Managing Director and CEO, ICICI Home Finance, said.



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FREO partners with HDB Financial Services to offer lending solutions to new-age customers, BFSI News, ET BFSI

Banking & Finance

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FREO, India’s Neobank, formerly known as MoneyTap, has partnered with HDB Financial Services (HDBFS) to cater to the evolving financial needs of new-age consumers. Through this association, FREO will be providing customers with two innovative credit products: a credit line and a high-ticket personal loan across multiple cities in India. HDBFS in partnership with FREO will offer a credit line that enables consumers to get access to credit anywhere, anytime via a smartphone.An individual will get a personalized amount approved which they can start using immediately. As they repay the borrowed amount, the credit limit is replenished and they can continue withdrawing as much as they need. Furthermore, interest is levied only on the amount the consumer uses, and not the overall limit they have been given. The partnership also offers consumers high-ticket personal loans of up to INR 10 lacs, which can be utilized for bigger expenses such as home renovation, buying a vehicle, planning a trip, and so forth.

Bala Parthasarathy, Co-Founder, FREO, said, “Partnerships with banks and reliable financial institutions play a pivotal role in building the Fintech ecosystem, making credit easily accessible for unbanked customers and helping them save and spend smartly throughout their financial journey. In sync with this vision, we have collaborated with HDB Financial Services Ltd and aim to deliver a complete digital financial journey to customers which is easy and flexible. We are delighted with this partnership and look forward to transforming the fintech ecosystem together in the times to come.”

G Ramesh, MD & CEO, HDB Financial Services, said, “The HDBFS-FREO partnership is aimed at ensuring hassle-free access to credit to meet the ever-evolving needs of our customers across India and fulfill their aspirations. We have a strong presence in more than 950 locations with over 1300 branches pan-India. The association is a great step towards boosting the overall customer experience by providing them with easy finance through digital channels”.



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Bharti AXA Life in bancassurance pact with Shivalik Small Finance Bank

Banking & Finance

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Private life insurer Bharti AXA Life Insurance has entered into a bancassurance partnership with Shivalik Small Finance Bank for the distribution of its life insurance products through the bank’s pan-India network of branches.

Under this agreement, Bharti AXA Life Insurance will offer its suite of life insurance products, including protection, health, savings and investment plans, to customers of Shivalik Small Finance Bank across its 31 branches and digital network across the country.

This alliance will enable over 4.5 lakh customers of Shivalik Bank to access the range of products offered by the company to provide financial security.

Bharti AXA General launches Health AdvantEDGE

Expansion of distribution footprint

Commenting on the association, Parag Raja, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Bharti AXA Life Insurance, said in a statement: “The outbreak of Covid-19 has led to a notable shift in customers’ perception of life insurance, which is fundamentally about protection. With our alliance with Shivalik Bank, we shall empower the bank’s customers with protection and holistic insurance solutions and help us strengthen our commitment while reaching out to urban, tier-II and tier-III markets. We believe this partnership will enrich our distribution footprint and help us increase insurance penetration in the country.”

UP-based Shivalik SFB commences operations

Suveer Kumar Gupta, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Shivalik Small Finance Bank, said this alliance is a part of the bank’s various measures towards financial inclusion and acceleration of wealth creation for its customers.

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SBI chief, BFSI News, ET BFSI

Banking & Finance

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State Bank of India (SBI) will try to keep the interest rates benign as long as possible with a view to supporting the economic growth, its chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara has said.

On the impact of the second wave of COVID-19 on non-performing assets of the bank, the SBI chief said that as the lockdown was not pan-India, one will have to wait and watch to assess its impact on the banking sector.

Observing that multiple variables including inflation have a bearing on the interest rates, he said, “our effort is to support the growth initiatives. To really ensure that happens, we will try to keep the soft interest rate regime for as long as possible.”

In an interview to PTI, Khara said it is too early to give any colour to likely scenario of NPAs because of local restrictions.

The impact of lockdown differ from states to states as it is not uniform, he said, adding, “so, probably we can wait and watch for some more time before making any comment on impact on economy and NPA situation.”

Speaking about various initiatives of the country’s largest lender, Khara said, SBI has decided to set up makeshift hospitals with ICU facilities for COVID-19 patients in some of the worst affected states.

The bank has already earmarked Rs 30 crore and is engaging with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and hospital management for setting up medical facilities on an emergency basis for the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

He said the bank intends to put in place 1,000 beds with 50 ICU facilities in the states that are the worst affected.

SBI is also collaborating with hospitals and NGOs to provide oxygen concentrators for patients.

“We have put in place an action plan. We have earmarked Rs 70 crore plus out of which we are giving Rs 21 crore to 17 circles for COVID-19 related initiatives,” he said.

For the safety of employees and their families, he said, the bank has tied up with hospitals across the country to facilitate treatment of those who have fallen sick on a priority basis.

About 70,000 employees out of 2.5 lakh strong staff strength have already got vaccinated. The bank has decided to bear the cost of vaccination for its employees and their dependent family members.



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Banks want debt recast scheme back as Covid wave intensifies, BFSI News, ET BFSI

Banking & Finance

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Banks have sought an extension of one-time debt recast scheme as the curbs after fresh Covid wave are likely to increase defaults and affect asset quality.

The bank chiefs have petitioned RBI to extend the scheme introduced last year in a meeting with the governor earlier this week, according to reports.

No relief measures

Banks, which got protection and support by a swift moratorium on loans when the pandemic first struck, have no such cover this time.

As the second wave intensifies, most of the relief measures and schemes announced by the government and Reserve Bank of India have expired. On top of it, the central bank is non-committal on moratoriums.

In today’s conditions, there is no need for a moratoriumRBI governor Shaktikanta Das

Also, a spike in overdue loans after the lifting of the moratorium has been worrying analysts.

“The level of loans in overdue categories has increased after the moratorium has been lifted and the impact on asset quality will be spread over FY2021 and FY2022 as various interventions and relief measures have prevented a large one-time hit on profitability and capital of banks,” ratings agency Icra said in a report.

What Fitch says

Banks want debt recast scheme back as Covid wave intensifies

India’s second wave of Covid infections poses increased risks for India’s fragile economic recovery and its banks, says Fitch Ratings. It already expects a moderately worse environment for the Indian banking sector in 2021, but headwinds would intensify should rising infections and follow-up measures to contain the virus further affect business and economic activity.

Fitch forecasts India’s real GDP growth at 12.8% for the financial year ending March 2022 (FY22). This incorporates expectations of a slowdown in 2Q21 due to the flareup in new coronavirus cases but the rising pace of infections poses renewed risks to the forecast. Over 80% of the new infections are in six prominent states, which combined account for roughly 45% of total banking sector loans. Any further disruption in economic activity in these states would pose a setback for fragile business sentiment, even though a stringent pan-India lockdown like the one in 2020 is unlikely.

Challenging environment

The operating environment for banks will most likely remain challenging against this backdrop. This second wave could dent the sluggish recovery in consumer and corporate confidence, and further suppress banks’ prospects for new business (9MFY21 credit growth: +4.5% as per Fitch’s estimate), it said. There are also asset quality concerns since banks’ financial results are yet to fully factor in the first wave’s impact and the stringent 2020 lockdown due to the forbearances in place. We consider the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) and retail loans to be most at risk, the rating agency said.

Retail loans have been performing better than our expectations but might see increased stress if renewed restrictions impinge further on individual incomes and savings. MSMEs, however, benefited from state-guaranteed refinancing schemes that prevented stressed exposures from souring.

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