23 July 2013

RBI imposes fresh restrictions on gold imports

In yet another step to contain the current account deficit, the Reserve Bank of India on Monday imposed restrictions on gold imports by banks and other authorised agencies.

As per the new norms, all banks and authorised agencies will have to ensure that at least 20 per cent of the imported gold is made available for exports and a similar amount is retained with the customs.

"It shall be incumbent on all nominated banks/nominated agencies to ensure that at least one fifth of every lot of import of gold (in any form/purity including import of gold coins/dore) is exclusively made available for the purpose of export," the RBI said in a notification.

China shuns Indian Badminton League

Badminton powerhouse China will not take part in the inaugural Indian Badminton League next month, organisers said on Monday, taking much of the sheen off the million-dollar event. Former India cricket captain Sunil Gavaskar is said to have a stake in the Mumbai franchise which will play against teams from Pune, Lucknow, Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Cronje took Rs 1.2 crore to fix matches: Delhi Police

Former South African captain Hansie Cronje was paid Rs 1.20 crore in two installments of Rs 60 lakh each by London-based bookie Sanjeev Chawla to fix matches between India and South Africa, alleges the Delhi Police chargesheet on the match-fixing scandal of 2000.

Private equity fund Sequoia may invest Rs 100 crore in Vini Cosmetics

Three years after Darshan Patel and his brothers sold Paras Pharmaceuticals, built with private equity funds, he is back in the market to raise money for his personal care company Vini Cosmetics.

Vini Cosmetics, which owns brands like Fogg, 18+ deodorants and White Tone Talc, is in advanced talks with PE fund Sequoia Capital to raise around 100 crore to expand its products in the hair and skin care range and widen its distribution network, three people with direct knowledge of the development

SBI says needs Rs 2.3 lakh crore to meet Basel III norms

The nation's largest lender State Bank of IndiaBSE 1.84 % needs Rs 2,30,000 crore in additional capital to meet the stringent Basel III requirements till 2018"We need about Rs 2,30,000 crore of additional capital for Basel III up to 2018. Out of this, Rs 1,50,000 crore is of tier I and the rest Rs 80,000 in tier II capital," SBI managing director and chief financial officer Diwakar Gupta told PTI here in an interaction. According to the Reserve Bank, the banking system will collectively require Rs 5,00,000 crore to implement the Basel-III capital needs. Basel-III is the newer international standard of capital allocation devised and adopted following the 2008 financial crisis.

RBI to treat loans to ultra power projects as secured debt

The Reserve Bank of India has allowed loans to new ultra mega power projects (UMPPs) to be regarded as secured debt even though the site and the plant will be owned by distribution utilities, not the winning bidder, official sources said, setting the stage for a wave of new giant power stations. Power Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia had approached RBI on the issue as lenders said debts to the proposed projects would be risky in the absence of ownership by the borrower. The new round of UMPPs, followings the previous projects such as the Mundra plant of the Tata group and Reliance Power's Sasan unit may also allow tariff revision, bar non-core sector firms from bidding and restrict offloading of equity by the company that is awarded the project. The norms, known as standard bidding documents, will be taken to the cabinet committee on economic affairs for approval and a note has been circulated for consultation. Once approved, the norms will pave way for auction of two ultra mega power projects in Bedhabahal and Surguja in Chhattisgarh that have been put on hold. The government has so far awarded three ultra mega power projects to Reliance PowerBSE 1.97 % and one to Tata Power. Sites for 10 more such projects have been identified in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka,Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Bihar, Jharkhand and Maharashtra.

RBI starts scrutiny of nearly 3,000 private finance companies

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has started scrutiny of nearly 3,000 companies which could be carrying out non-banking finance operations without requisite registration, in the wake of concerns about their actual business activities. RBI Governor D Subbarao earlier said that illegal money pooling activities can only be checked by stronger surveillance and better enforcement of laws.

"The problem is not with regulated schemes, the problem is with unlawful schemes, and unlawful schemes are by definition not regulated.