RBI to create committee for large loans by banks, FIs
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India will create a permanent working group for a cooperative approach while lending large amounts to companies. The group will comprise members from banks and financial institutions.

Such an approach, the RBI feels, is required because of the need to maintain the capital adequacy ratio.
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RBI looks for a clearing house for repos
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India is planning to channel repo deals with the help of a clearing house. This clearing house will be similar to that of the government securities clearing corporation in the US.

According to Usha Thorat, chief general manager, RBI, the clearing corporation need not be necessarily promoted by the RBI. It will facilitate tri-partite repos wherein the corporation will act as the third party.

The Reserve Bank may also stretch the repo market to the non-banking sector.
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Escrow limit finalised for three power projects
Mumbai: SBI Capital Markets Ltd. has fixed the escrow capacity for three private sector power projects in Uttar Pradesh. The three are Rosa Power – promoted by the A V Birla group and Powergen, Jaiprakash Industries’ Vishnuprayag and Srinagar Hydro Power.

The UP state electricity board had appointed SBI Caps for ascertaining its escrowable capacity. This limit has been fixed at 1,460MW.
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GIC plans novel instruments
Calcutta: General Insurance Corporation is planning to introduce instruments that will promise market-related returns to investors as well as offer several personal insurance schemes. These instruments will have the insurance premiums in-built into them.

This means that investors will not have to pay an additional sum as premium for obtaining insurance cover offered with the instrument.
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IndusInd Bank to toe the retail line
Pune: IndusInd Bank, which started off focusing on wholesale investors, has now decided to shift its attention to the retail segment. It will target demand deposits and reduce dependence on non-resident Indian deposits.

The bank is also focusing on reducing its non-performing assets and its cost of deposits, which are 7.2 per cent and 10.3 per cent as of year ended March 1999.

As per Reserve Bank of India guidelines, IndusInd Bank’s promoters have to bring their holding to 40 per cent from the current 62 per cent.
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8- point agenda for economy from G V Ramakrishna
New Delhi: Disinvestment Commission chairman G V Ramakrishna has listed eight areas where there is need for a national consensus. One of his main suggestions is the privatisation of all public sector banks except the State Bank of India.

Mr Ramakrishna has also urged the government to bring its holding in all financial institutions to below 51 per cent and grant them more autonomy.
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Kaiga nuclear power plant to start production in January 2000
Kaiga: The second unit of the 220 MW Kaiga nuclear power plant is scheduled to attain criticality in September 1999 and is expected to commence commercial production in January 2000. The final clearance will come from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board.

The reactor will use both uranium and thorium. It will supply electricity to the southern grid comprising Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Goa.
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ABN Amro bids for Bouwfonds
Amsterdam: The largest Dutch bank, ABN Amro, has made a friendly offer to take over the Dutch property group -- Bouwfonds Nederlandse Gemeenten -- for $1.27 billion. The bank feels this will boost its European real estate and mortgage business.
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Bank Indonesia to be audited
Jakarta: Indonesia’s central bank, Bank Indonesia, will be audited, as per an order passed by Satrio Budiardjo Yudono, head of the Supreme Audit Agency. He has said that he will invite management consultancy firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers for the audit.

The audit order follows the banking scandal that rocked the country. Bank Indonesia feels that such a move would need the Indonesian parliament's approval.
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