We here below give press clippings from various news sources for your references and use. The clippings are placed in order of date of appearance in the relevant press media.

 

 

Karur Vysya to open 10 more branches                                                          Business Standard

Chennai June 27

Karur Vysya Bank Ltd (KVB) expects to open 10 more branches during the current fiscal. The bank also plans to launch internet and mobile banking by the first week of August.

Addressing a press conference on the tie-up with Visa Cards, P T Kuppuswamy, chairman, KVB, said that the bank has obtained the license from the Reserve Bank of India to open 10 more branches. It takes about Rs 12 lakh to set up a branch along with an ATM.

At present, KVB has 254 branches and 156 ATMs across the country predominantly in south India.

“There are over 27 million visa credit and debit cards in India. This offers a good opportunity for generating fee-based income for the bank. It will also serve as an additional advantage as it will lead to lesser maintenance cost with the increase in the usage of ATMs,” he added.

The tie-up with Visa will offer customers of any bank and foreign travellers using credit cards, smart cards or ATM cards on Visa platform to access any KVB ATM.

Gagan Maini, director - marketing and business development- South Asia, Visa International, said that ATMs are important relationship management tools for banks today and fulfil both the need for connectivity and accessibility.

                                  KVB launches new scheme for cardholders

                                                   Business Line

Chennai June25 

The private Karur Vysya Bank Ltd, on Saturday launched 'acquiring of VISA transactions in their ATMs,' which will enable domestic customers of any bank and foreign travellers, who use cards on the Visa platform, to have access to any KVB ATM fo r cash withdrawals or balance enquiries.

The withdrawal amount will be in Indian currency and for a foreign national using a VISA credit or debit card irrespective of the currency in which his account is maintained, it will be converted to the Indian currency value and will be shown as availabl e balance, Mr P T Kuppuswamy, Bank Chairman said while launching the new scheme.

Since the bank does not have a credit card product, even our customers who own a VISA credit card of other banks can transact in our ATMs, he said.

The bank is targeting to garner deposit of Rs 8,000 crore and advances of Rs 5,500 crore by the end of 2005-06, as against Rs 6,672 crore and Rs 4,741 crore respectively, registered in 2004-05.

It had posted a profit of Rs 105.34 for the year ended March 2005 as against Rs 161.05 crore a year ago, the fall was due to depreciation suffered on the investment portfolio, owing to rise in interest rates, he explained. The bank is planning to introduce Internet banking and mobile banking soon.

 

 Karur Vysya Bank in pact to be co-promoter in NCDEX arm

                                L.N. Revathy, Hindu Business Line               

 

 Karur , May 9

KARUR Vysya Bank Ltd (KVB) has been roped in as a co-promoter of National Collateral Management Services Ltd (NCMSL), a sister concern of the National Commodity and Derivates Exchange/ NCDEX. (KVB is also the clearing banker for NCDEX.)

The company , which is also promoted by Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Corporation Bank, Bank of India, HDFC, Yes Bank, KVB and Indian Farmers Fertiliser Co-operative Ltd, aims to serve the farming community.

The KVB Chairman, Mr P.T. Kuppusamy, said: "We have been the clearing banker of NCDEX for the last four to five months.

Advancing against warehouse receipts is not a new line of business for us. So, when the NCMSL proposal came up, we were too happy to invest in the venture," he told Business Line.

KVB has invested Rs 3 crore towards the share capital of NCMSL.

The agreement was signed in Mumbai last week. Mr Kuppusamy pointed out that the bank had been advancing against warehouse receipts without proper appraisal of the quality or rating of the produce.

"Under the new system, the banker's position is secured with a forward contract. Advances against warehouse receipts will no longer be a balance sheet risk for the banker. The company will help the farmer discover the price of the produce," he explained.

KVB has advanced over Rs 150 crore last fiscal against warehouse receipts.

He said NCMSL plans to have warehouses throughout the country as well as a technical team to assess the quality and value of the produce brought to the warehouses.

"The warehouse management services company plans to construct godowns across 150 centres very soon. It has taken on lease/rent warehouses across 43 centres in the country," Mr Kuppusamy said.

"Though we have established our position in the South, this agreement with NCMSL will make our entry into up-country centres hassle-free."

 

 

 

 

Karur Vysya Bank third quarter net rises 10 percent

                                       Hindu Business Line

 

Chennai , Jan. 23

KARUR Vysya Bank reported a 10 per cent growth in net profits for the third quarter at Rs 44.54 crore compared to Rs 40.21 crore for the corresponding period in the previous fiscal.

The marginal growth in profits was possible because of a write back of provisions to the tune of Rs 14.62 crore during the quarter.

Interest income was up 19 per cent to Rs152 crore, but total income for the quarter dropped 12 per cent to Rs157.06 crore.

There was a sharp drop in other income at Rs 5.09 crore compared to Rs 52.31 crore for the corresponding 3 month period ended December 2002.

The bank's capital adequacy was at 20.26

 

 

Karur Vysya Bank : Buy - Hindu Business Line

 

INVESTMENTS can be considered in the stock of Karur Vysya Bank. The stock is trading at a discount of more than 20 per cent to its book value. The stock is also trading at a price to earnings multiple of less than five times its earnings.

Given the growth in advances registered by the industry, banking companies look all set to report good growth in profits. The permission given by the Reserve Bank of India to transfer securities to `held to maturity category', which shields financial statements from the decline in prices of Government securities, is another positive factor.

Similar to other banks, Karur Vysya Bank is also poised to derive benefits from these developments and post reasonable growth in profits for the year ending March 2005. In the first half ended September 2004, profits before provision for depreciation in value of investments had grown by a respectable 30 per cent. Growth in advances has also been about industry average and there has not been any deterioration on the non-performing assets front.

 

 Karur Vysya Bank is a play on relative valuation. The stock is trading at valuation that is lower than that of several of its peers. In contrast, the performance of the bank has been marginally above industry average. Any change in regulations regarding ownership structure is also likely to create the least impact on the bank's stock price.

 

 

Karur Vysya Bank live on RTGS  - Hindu Business Line

COIMBATORE: Karur Vysya Bank has gone live with real time gross settlement (RTGS) from July 2, after establishing the necessary infrastructure at its data centre in Chennai.

Transactions worth Rs 40 crore were put through the RTGS on a day-to-day basis at present.

 

Karur Vysya Bank to offer Internet banking

AS part of the strategy of reinventing itself to extend better customer service, Karur Vysya Bank Ltd (KVB), the Karur-based private sector bank, proposes to introduce Internet banking, telephone banking and auxiliary services soon.

Addressing a gathering on the eve of inauguration of the bank's renovated office premises and automated teller machine (ATM) at Secunderabad here, the KVB Senior General Manager, Mr S. Nagarajan, said these were some of the dynamic plans of the bank on the technology front.

"We continue to embrace new generation technologies while remain rooted in the traditional values such as personalised care. Our aim is to provide world-class services of new generation private banks at affordable prices," he said.

On the technology front, the bank has fully computerised around 98 per cent of its business and implemented core banking solution in over 60 branches with Data Centre at Chennai. According to Mr Nagarajan, the bank has ambitious plans to implement core-banking solution in all its branches by the end of current fiscal.

Having installed 113 ATMs across the country on its own, KVB has also tied-up with UTI Bank to utilise their 1,100-plus ATMs across the country. With the support of core-banking solution, the bank has introduced multi-city current account facility at over 60 branches, Mr Nagarajan said.

Karur Vysya Bank earmarks Rs.60 Cr for Tech initiatives - plans enhanced focus on retail operations - By Hindu Business Line

KARUR Vysya Bank (KVB) has earmarked funds to the tune of Rs 60 crore towards technological solutions across all its delivery channels.

Disclosing this at a press conference here on Saturday, the KVB Chairman, Mr P.T. Kuppuswamy, said the bank has already spent over Rs 40 crore on technology initiatives that include implementing core-banking solution and real time gross settlement (RTGS) for inter-bank and intra-bank transactions, setting up of automated teller machines (ATMs) and for sharing of the ATM networks of other banks under alliance.

The bank now plans to invest the balance Rs 20 crore during the current fiscal. It plans to install 70 more ATMs taking the total network to 180. Having already tied-up with UTI Bank for sharing the latter's 1,400 ATMs, the bank is currently negotiating with a couple of banks for entering into similar arrangements. The new alliances enable the KVB customers to have access to 3,000 more ATMs. Further, the bank is also planning to open 15 more branches during the current fiscal.

According to Mr Kuppuswamy, the bank has already implemented core-banking solution in 99 branches and its 100th branch at Nizamabad would join the network on Monday.

Of the total 225 branches, 183 are in semi-urban and urban and the balance in rural areas.

He said the retail segment currently contributes around 30 per cent to the total revenues, while the balance comes from corporate segment.

The bank proposes to improve its retail business to 40 per cent of revenues, Mr Kuppuswamy said.

Towards improving the non-interest income, the bank has already entered into alliances with Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund, Birla Sun Life Insurance, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance and Export Credit Guarantee Corporation to sell their mutual fund and insurance products.

Apart from taking steps to improving volumes through the current alliances, KVB is also looking at fresh arrangements for vending financial products.

Having crossed the Rs 10,000-crore mark in business volumes during the last fiscal, the bank has set a target of reaching Rs 11,500-crore business for the current fiscal.

The bank, which has brought down its gross NPAs to 5.83 per cent from 7.46 per cent and net NPAs to 2.32 per cent from 4.2 per cent during last fiscal, now expects to attain `zero NPAs' level in the next couple of years, the KVB Chairman said.

 

 

Karur Vysya to market ECGC risk products - Hidnu Business Line

 

 

EXPORT Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC) has signed a MoU with Tamil Nadu-based Karur Vysya Bank Ltd, to enable the former to route marketing of its export credit/risk insurance products through the latter under the concept of `bancassurance'.

Karur Vysya is the fourth bank to enter into the tie-up with ECGC, after Corporation Bank, South Indian Bank and Federal Bank.

The MoU was signed on Thursday by Mr S. Prabhakaran, Executive Director of ECGC, and Mr P.T. Kuppuswamy, Chairman of KVB, at the bank's headquarters in Karur, according to an ECGC communication issued here.

The agreement would enable KVB offering the ECGC's export insurance covers to the exporting community serviced by the bank's various branches across the country.

ECGC is offering six different export insurance risk covers including the three new additions — buyer-wise policy, turnover policy and maturity factoring — for the exporters.

According to ECGC corporate office sources, the corporation is also likely to sign a similar agreement with Bank of Rajasthan Ltd next week.