UTI confident of maintaining deposit, advances growth this fiscal

Mumbai, May 25 (UNI) UTI bank, is confident of maintaining its 50 per cent growth in advances and 32 per cent growth in deposits this fiscal as well, the bank's Chairman and Managing Director P J Nayak here today said.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the event organised to launch its online broking service in association with Geojit Financial Servises, Mr Nayak said that the bank has been growing its demand deposits at 65 per cent YoY in the last six years.

Describing the present time as a ''very good time to grow our corporate book,'' Mr Nayak averred that the ''corporate credit cycle is now growing. ''The bank is getting very high yields from its lendings to SMEs while for large corporates, the yield depends on their ratings. ''We make our money on AA and A-rated corporates. We also lend to BBB-rated corporates but it is riskier,'' he informed.

UTI Bank will be undertaking its medium-term note (MTN) programme of USD one billion by end-June and this will, in all likelihood, be done in tranches, he said, adding that all the money thus raised will be kept in Singapore. The bank is entitled to raise Rs 2,000-to-Rs 2,500 crore by way of hybrid capital to meet its Tier I capital and upper-Tier II capital requirements. This too will be raised in tranches and the bank has applied to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to raise this amount overseas.

If, however, this is not allowed, then UTI Bank will go in for a domestic equity float, Mr Nayak revealed. The additional capital so raised will be used to propel the bank's growth.

Mr Nayak also revealed that the bank, after opening its first international branch in Singapore recently, is now eyeing the Gulf, Hong Kong, Sri Lankan and Chinese markets to set up its branches.

UNI JJ MJ VKG2000