EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The press statement issued by ICICI Bank based on the enquiry report headed by Justice (Retd.) Srikrishna to investigate the allegations against Chanda Kochhar appears deliberately confusing and convoluted. While it states that Chanda Kochhar was in violation of the bank’s Code of Conduct, on the more serious charge of...
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Yes Bank has appointed Ravneet Gill as the bank’s CEO, effective latest from March 1, 2019, for a 3-year term. The announcement led to a spurt in the bank’s share price, as the leadership issue was finally resolved. While investors rejoiced, it remains to be seen whether the...
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), India’s premier federal police investigation agency, finally filed a First Information Report (FIR) and charged Chanda Kochhar, former CEO, ICICI Bank, her husband, Deepak Kochhar and V. N. Dhoot, managing director, Videocon Group, with cheating ICICI Bank in the Rs 32.5 bn Videocon loan...
On January 11, 2019, the Reserve
Bank of India (RBI) issued
a press release
informing the public that “by an order dated January 4, 2019 imposed
a monetary penalty of Rs 30 million on Citibank NA India (the bank) for
deficiencies in compliance with the RBI instructions on ‘Fit and Proper’
criteria for directors...
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Indusind Bank’s reckless decision to provide a Rs 20 bn (8% of the bank’s capital) unsecured bridge loan to IL&FS, an insolvent infrastructure company has led to a significant de-rating of its valuation multiple. In the 3QFY2019 results call, Ramesh Sobti, the bank’s CEO believes that the bank...
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The deadline (December 31, 2018) for Uday Kotak, the founder-CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank (KMB), to dilute his stake to 20% has come and gone, and shareholders await the wrath of the banking regulator.
The regulator had already given an extended time line for the founders to reduce their stake, a...
For the last 5 years, the profitability of HDFC Bank, India’s largest
bank by market capitalisation, has declined even though its critical net
interest margin (NIM) has remained constant. Interestingly, to maintain its
pristine margin, the bank has focused on taking on more risk in the form of
unsecured retail loans. Such a...
Leadership is
unravelling at Yes Bank and the stock is tanking. In the dark hours of November
14, the bank announced the immediate resignations of Ashok Chawla, its
non-executive, independent chairman, and Vasant Gujarathi, an independent
director and head of its important audit committee. The directors of Yes Bank appear to have
joined the...
The unseemly public jostling between India’s central bank and the government of India casts a poor light on both institutions. Adhering to unrealistic fiscal deficit constraints has compelled the government to plunder public institutions such as the Life Insurance Corporation of India, ONGC and now the Reserve Bank of...
Romesh Sobti, CEO, Indusind Bank, is a veteran banker with 43 years’ experience. He recently went on record to defend the bank’s substantial bridge loan to the fast-collapsing IL&FS, a systemically important non-deposit-taking core investment company. Sadly, he found this writer’s earlier insight on Indusind to be “nasty” and...
