Bank of India to go public; dilute govt equity by 5%

New Delhi, Oct 5 (UNI) Bank of India plans to go public, diluting five per cent of the government equity. BoI Chairman T S Narayanswami told Reporters here that the Public Sector Bank is likely to tap the capital market to raise fresh equity by bringing down the government's holding by 5 per cent.

"We may dilute government equity by 5 per cent,'' Mr Narayanasami said, but refused to give a time frame in this regard.

Mr Narayanaswami had come to the North Block to attend the meeting called by Finance Minister P Chidambaram to spur industrial growth.

He said the bank expected loan growth of 23 to 24 per cent in the fiscal 2007- 08.

The government holds 69.5 per cent stake in the bank.

Mr Narayanasami said the bank would like to operate on a good net interest margin.

Talking about the review of the monetary policy by RBI later this month, Mr Narayanasami said the Central Bank should strike a balance between lending and deposit rates.

''There should be a balance taking into account surplus liquidity, rupee-dollar parity, inflation and gross domestic product growth,'' he said.

UNI