Credit Information Bureau of India (CIBIL) has joined hands with 31 leading micro finance institutions (MFIs) of the country to build up credit information bureau for MFIs.

The MFIs are a part of the Micro Finance Institutions Network (MFIN). MFIN has recently been set up as a regulatory body of the MFIs.

"The establishment of Micro finance Credit Information Bureau is a vital step towards inculcating financial discipline among the borrowers of micro-loans and will increase credit...

Mahindra finance, the financial services arm of the multi crore financial arm of the Mahindra Group has launched a new product ‘Loan against gold' in Kerala.

MMFSL Vice-Chairman Uday Phadke said that the product has been designed so that customers are able to receive loans against gold ornaments. This way they will not have to sell their gold ornaments when they are in need of money.

The facility has been designed to be ideal for contingency requirements...

The card subsidiary of Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India named LIC cards has set an aim of generating credit card sales worth Rs. 5 lakh in the upcoming financial year. This target, if achieved would lead to half a million card sales for the company.

The company has built a customer base of 50, 000 in just one year of starting its operations.

LIC cards has an arrangement with Mangalore-based Corporation Bank for the credit card...

The credit customer seems to be in distress with all guidelines being drawn in favor of the issuer. Customer has no longer remained the entity of prime importance especially in the credit card business.

The resultant of all this is the depreciating customer base and inflating number of customer complaints against issuers.

The banking Ombudsman report has said that the number of complaints against credit card companies showing a regular hike year on year. The number of...

Banking sector is soon going to spread its wings in the field of IT too. The third largest lender of the country, Punjab National Bank (PNB) is soon to set up an IT subsidiary so as to provide technology related assistance to the financial sector of the country.

The bank's chief general manager, Mr. R.I.S. Sidhu said, "We have the technical know-how in the area of financial services and we want to share this know-how....

The Indian economy is on a growth track again as is evident from the rise in spending levels of individuals. The data collected on credit card spending from October 2009 to January 2010 by the Reserve Bank of India has revealed the fact.

The quarter ended on December 2009 showed that the average credit card spend has risen from Rs 2,153 to Rs 2,623, an increase by 22 % as compared to the figures from same...

The largest private sector lender of the country, ICICI Bank has stopped its lifetime free credit card scheme. With this step the bank has gestured a change in consumer banking strategy.

The lifetime free credit card scheme had been launched by the bank way back in August 2005. It was a drive by the bank to gain major chunk of the market share. This move had brought a new wave of change in the credit...

The banks in Punjab have decided to adopt a block in each district following the slow progress of the ‘Debt Swap Scheme'.

This step has been taken to free the farmers from the clutches of money lenders who harass them by charging preposterous rates for loans.

Punjab National Bank, the leading bank in the state has recently come up with some amendments in the Debt Swap Scheme. According to this, if a borrower requests for loan...

Yet another case of credit card fraud has been revealed by the police. Five people consisting of three Nigerians and two Indians have been arrested on 8th April 2010 and have been remanded to fourteen days of police custody by a city court.

Three Nigerians namely Peter Orenabi Olunwagbenga, Benson Oladetam Adams and Leena Orenabi were arrested by Kolkata police for involvement in credit card fraud. Also two Indians, Manish Agarwal and Ankik Shaw were arrested...

This women's day, the financial services companies have taken a step towards increasing women participation in money matters.

The Indian society still suffers from the stigmata of gender bias. Money and financial matters are still kept as a man's business and not a concern of the female counterpart.

There are many chambers in metros as well as non metros where the women still do not have access to banking channels.

However, things are changing for the better. The...

State Bank of India is planning to install five lakh points of sale (POS) for both credit and debit cards in the country. To pursue this plan it is heading for a joint venture and has finalized the top three candidates for the same. The candidates are Visa, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Global Payments. Point of sale refers to electronic swipe machines used in retail outlets.

After having broadened its customer base with...

Public sector lender, Canara Bank is in need for a card reconciliation software. The bank has issued a request for proposal (RFP) regarding the supply, installation and maintenance of such a system which would be covering debit card transaction consolidation and settlement verification, debit and credit card reconciliation, dispute management and charge-back automation.

The RFP clearly dictates that the any bidder coming in for the proposal has to be a registered company in India, has...

ABN Amro has cut the credit limit for many of its card holders in India by one tenth. It has also raised the slab of minimum amount payable from 5 % of total dues to 7 %. The step by the bank is thought to be a measure to persuade the card holders to surrender their cards as the bank plans closure of its personal loan and credit card segment in India.

The bank has...

The Central Government has worked up a plan to infuse money worth Rs. 35,000 crore to public sector banks in the next two years. The step has been taken on the note of meeting the credit requirement of the economy.

As per the RBI norms, a minimum 6% Tier I capital needs to be maintained by banks. The proposed capital infusion will allow the banks to maintain an 8% Tier-I capital adequacy ratio (CAR).

A bank's capital...

After getting a good response from its pilot study in Bangalore, Citibank is planning to expand its mobile payment service to other cities of the country as well as abroad.

The bank has arrived at this decision on the basis of the study conducted at Bangalore in July. The bank had started using mobile phones for credit card payments at retail joints as well as other points of sale.

Point of sale refers to the card...

Airtel digital TV and HDFC Bank have joined hands in serving their common customer base. Airtel has announced an offer for all its HDFC Bank credit card holders. The offer provides all HDFC credit card holders a 15% discount on buying an Airtel DTH connection online. The offer remains valid till March 31, 2010.

Airtel has always pioneered for bringing out innovative products and services for its customers. An alliance with HDFC bank, the leading...

Credit card as a convenience product

For some, it is luring as it offers rewards and cash-back while for others it is a cool status symbol to flash a credit card. There is a wide variety of credit cards available with...

A statement by the CBI Director Ashwini Kumar, on Thursday revealed that the banking industry has lost as much as Rs. 5,500 crore as a result of frauds in the last four fiscals.

The statement was given by the CBI Director while speaking at the 2nd Conference of Central Vigilance Officers of public sector banks and financial institutions and CBI officers in New Delhi.

"Besides, the traditional loans and advances and the frauds in electronic payments are...

With the tide of recession coming down, credit card issuers are back to business again. They are again all set to attract customers with their wide range of services. With the Supreme Court refusing to remove the stay order on penalizing banks for charging higher interest rates, these credit card issuers are all ready with fresh ideas.

Save up to 25 per cent on room tariffs at 71 hotel chains across the country with a...

The Reserve Bank of India organized a financial out reach camp in Pearsonmun village of Chura chandpur district along with the State Bank of India. To mark the occasion, RBI Executive Director VK Sharma launched ATM facilities at the same village and other nearby places.

The event was a part of the drive organized by RBI to make people in rural areas aware about financial inclusion and other facilities available at banks for the common...