SBI to raise 3000 crores for future programmes

Kolkata, Jul 24 (UNI) State Bank of India, the largest public sector bank, plans to raise Rs 3000 crores as Tier II capital this year to part finance its future programmes, SBI Managing Director T S Bhattacharyya said here today.

Speaking to newsmen on the sidelines of a FICCI sponsored Banking Conclave here today, Mr Bhattacharyya also informed that the SBI Capital Market Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the bank, has set up SBI Ventures Private Limited as a new company last week and had arranged a 100 million dollars from the Soft Bank of Japan for investing in the venture capital requirements of the pharmaceutical sector.

He said the new company also plans to seek huge amounts of foreign funds from a number of other overseas companies for investing in other sectors like IT , auto manufacturings and in auto component sectors.

Mr Bhattacharjee said in the era of fast growing economy, SBI requires a huge amount of capital base and for that purpose was looking at every opportunity to raise the money primarily through the Tier II bonds route.

He said, however, the bank had no plan to further dilute the government's stake in the bank and thereby was not opting for any Tier I route, at least till 2008.

To a query he said that the SBI had also approached the Centre as well as the Reserve Bank of India to allow them to go for the Rights issue. However, the Centre was yet to come out with any clear cut decision in this reagrd as yet, the SBI MD informed .

Regarding any plans for any further foreign acquisitions for the bank in near future, Mr Bhattacharjee said with the new chairman of the bank assuming his office very recently, " we have decided to put the issue on hold at least for the next three to four months." He said the bank was also planning to increase its foreign presence quite substantially by increasinmg the number of its foreign offices from the present 70 to 100 within the next couple of years.

" We are also leaving no stone unturned to widen the Core Banking Solution by already bringing in more than 3000 branches under its network the remaining 7000 odd branches of the bank would also be brought under the purview of CBS gradually within the next few years.

Earlier, speaking at the banking conclave the SBI Managing Director gave an overview of the indian banking scenario and the shaping of it as an economic power house. He said that the bank was making special efforts to improve its agricultural credit lending and reach its facilities even to the remotest corner in the country with a number of innovative products.

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