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🍒   Bank of Baroda 'well protected' for switch to RBI's new loan-loss proposal, says CEO Chadha : Bank of Baroda does not foresee any challenges in adhering to the central bank's proposed loan-loss mechanism given its improved asset quality ratios and will be able to maintain credit costs, a top official at the bank said. The state-run lender's credit cost, the projected quantum of potential losses on total loans, was at 0.14% in the January-March quarter, down from 0.37% the previous quarter and 2.69% a year ago.Its gross non-performing assets (NPA) ratio fell to 3.79% in the fourth quarter from 4.53% in the previous quarter, while its net NPA ratio fell to 0.89% from 0.99% for the same period."I think we are very well protected," said Sanjiv Chadha, managing director and chief executive officer - economic times

🍒    Kotak Bank, Federal Bank hike MCLR by 10 bps across tenures : Private sector lenders Kotak Mahindra Bank and Federal Bank have hiked their marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) by 10 basis points (bps) across tenures from May 16, as per information available on the banks’ websites. After the 10-bps hike, Kotak Mahindra Bank’s overnight, 1-month, 3-months, and 6-months MCLR stood at 8.35%, 8.60%, 8.75% and 9% respectively, while MCLR on 1-year tenure was at 9.20% while for 3-year tenure, the MCLR was hiked to 9.35%. - Financial Express

🍒    IDBI Bank data room to open for bidders soon : The data room of IDBI Bank, which is on the block, will be opened to shortlisted bidders by next month and the financial bids are expected by September, according to official sources.  The government has got multiple expressions of interest (EoI) including from banks and these are currently being vetted by the Reserve Bank of India. In the event of a bank winning the bid to acquire IDBI Bank, both banks will have to merge in the immediate aftermath as per a scheme approved by the RBI. Sources said there won’t be any relaxation in this norm. - Financial Express

🍒    Banks flag high overnight rates, liquidity terms : Banks have conveyed their concerns about persistently high overnight rates and liquidity conditions to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to ensure a more equitable access to funding and shrink the widening gap between the benchmark policy and overnight rates. Lenders and other participants in money markets had held discussions that highlighted the changing nature of liquidity distribution in the banking system wherein some entities could access funds only at elevated rates. Market sources said the RBI has been requested by self-regulated market institutions to step in to bring overnight rates closer to the benchmark policy repo rate. "Banks have said that just looking at the extra funds parked with the RBI does not provide a true picture of the liquidity surplus," said one of the debt market sources cited above. - economic times

🍒    Credit card spends in forex under LRS now, travel industry bodies oppose move : Credit card spends in forex will come under RBI's liberalised remittance scheme (LRS) now as per a new government notification. On Tuesday, the finance ministry notified the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) (Amendment) Rules, 2023, to include international credit card payments under LRS. Earlier, the use of credit cards for meeting expenses while traveling outside India was not included under LRS. As per the notification, rule 7 of the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) Rules, 2000 has been omitted, which brings the usage of international credit cards towards meeting expenses on a visit outside India under LRS. - economic times

🍒    Government tightens rules on global credit card transactions by Indian travellers abroad : In a move that could weigh on personal expenses of wealthy Indians on foreign trips, including for gifts, the government has ended a key relaxation on the use of international credit cards (ICCs) by residents touring abroad. Such transactions would now be included in the computation of the limit of $2,50,000 under the liberalized remittance scheme (LRS) per person per year, beyond which the central bank's approval would be required. The department of economic affairs has now scrapped the Rule 7 of the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) Rules, 2000, under which such an exemption was granted earlier. The change comes into effect immediately. - economic times

🍒    CreditAccess Grameen Q4 net profit jumps 86% to ₹297 crore : Chennai, May 16 CreditAccess Grameen has posted a 86 per cent, year-on-year, growth in its fourth quarter net profit at ₹296.6 crore. The Bengaluru-based microfinance NBFC posted a net profit of ₹159.1 crore for the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.  The lender’s interest income went up by 32.4 per cent to ₹964.8 crore (₹728.5 crore) during the latest quarter. The company’s gross loan portfolio grew by 26.7 per cent YoY to ₹21,031 crore (₹16,599 crore) in Q4FY23.  - Business Line

🍒    Paytm elevates Bhavesh Gupta as Chief Operating Officer and President  :   One97 Communications Limited (OCL), which owns Paytm, has elevated Bhavesh Gupta as the company’s Chief Operating Officer and President. In his role as President and Chief Operating Officer, Gupta will be responsible to lead verticals of lending, insurance, payments – online and offline, Consumer payments, and drive key initiatives, including User Growth, Operations Risk, Fraud Risk, and Compliance, Paytm said in an exchange filing. - Business Line

🍒    MediBuddy, Indel Money partners to provide unique health cover and services to gold loan customers : MediBuddy, the digital healthcare platform, has launched a unique health cover and other products in partnership with Indel Money Limited, a leading gold loan NBFC. This partnership will provide Indel Money Gold customers access to a range of healthcare services, including unlimited general physician consultation, health check-ups, lab benefits up to ₹1,000, and free delivery of medicines. This health cover and other features are designed to provide financial support to users during medical emergencies, as the rising cost of healthcare makes it increasingly important for individuals to have comprehensive financial support. It also aims to fill the gap by covering out-of-pocket expenses and primary healthcare expenses for customers. - Business Line

🍒    Bank Retirees’ Association requests Govt to expedite pension updation : The Eastern Maharashtra Bank Retirees’ Association has requested the Government to expedite pension updation, which has been pending for the last 27 years. Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways, has taken up the Association’s representation in this regard with Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Kishanrao Karad. In a letter to Karad, Gadkari noted that retired employees of government-owned banks, rural banks, and old-generation private sector banks have been pursuing the issue of pension updation with the government for a long time. - Business Line

🍒    SBI Funds Management gets RBI nod to raise upto 9.99% stake in HDFC Bank : SBI Funds Management has received RBI approval to increase stake in HDFC Bank to 9.99 per cent in six months. The investment will be made as part of the mutual fund schemes managed by SBI Funds Management. The approval was granted on an application made by SBI Funds Management to RBI, according to the HDFC Bank statement, which added that the approval is subject to a few conditions. The fund house was advised by RBI to acquire the major shareholding in the bank by November 15. Further, SBIFML must ensure that the aggregate holding in the Bank remains below 10 per cent of the paid-up share capital or voting rights of the Bank at all times, it said. - Business Line

🍒    Govt expects Reserve Bank surplus to easily surpass Budget targets : The Centre expects a windfall surplus transferable from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the current fiscal year (2023-24, or FY24), Business Standard has learnt.  Sources said any dividend from the RBI, to be decided at the central bank’s board meeting on Friday and likely to be transferred this month itself, to be comfortably above the FY24 Budget Estimates (BE) for dividends from the RBI, state-owned banks, and financial institutions combined, of Rs 48,000 crore. “We are very comfortable with what we expect the RBI to announce as surplus. It will be well above BE,” said a senior government official. - Business Standard

🍒    Banks seek one more year to prepare for ECL reporting on stressed assets : Banks have sought one more year from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to develop risk models, gather data and test before the Expected Credit Loss (ECL) regime for stressed asset provision begins on April 1, 2025. Senior bank executives said technical capacity building will include systems and skills development. While internal work has begun on developing models with the help of experts, it is going to take more time for gathering data and assessing impact while transitioning from the Incurred Loss Approach banks use now. Banks, given their robust bottom line, can absorb any financial burden for the transition to ECL over a period, said the exe. The RBI has indicated a five-year glide path for a complete shift to ECL. - Business Standard

🍒    Rupee falls 10 paise to 82.35 against US dollar in early trade : The rupee depreciated 10 paise to 82.35 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday, weighed down by the strength of the American currency in the overseas market and a negative trend in domestic equities. At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 82.29 against the dollar, then fell to 82.35, registering a decline of 10 paise over its last close. - Business Line