Yes Bank, Reuters tie up for online forex trading

15 June 2007

Yes Bank, an Indian lender partly owned by Rabobank Groep of the Netherlands, will act as a market maker for dollar-rupee trade for corporates subscribing to Reuters terminal, while other corporates or individuals can avail online forex trading in any pair of currencies through the bank''s website, Ajay Mahajan, group president financial markets of the bank, said.

"For active risk managers, online trading reduces the electronic slippage and helps them to take a decision on the quoted price for forex liqudity almost in real time," he said.

About 90 per cent of corporates currently carry forex trading over the phone. Yes Bank has acquired more than 500 customers over the last two years and it would make efforts to increase its customers through the offer, Mahajan said.

YES Bank, meanwhile, is planning to raise as much as $210 million selling shares and debt this year, Mahajan said.

``There is a plan to raise money in a private placement of shares but it is still early days,'''' Mahajan said in an interview in Mumbai. ``It could be potentially as much as Rs400 crore ($97.8 million).''''

Yes Bank, based in Mumbai, will also sell $80 million to $110 million of debt to investors in India and abroad in the next four months, Mahajan said without elaborating.