The Reserve bank of India has sought for the opinion of Union Ministry of Finance in permitting ‘Credit Suisse' to set up its first Indian branch in Mumbai. RBI has already sent an application to the finance ministry. It awaits a political clearance from the centre.

Credit Suisse is a financial services company, headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland. It was founded by Alfred Escher in 1856. Credit Suisse comprises three divisions: Private banking, Investment banking and Asset management. Credit Suisse was ranked no.2 in the total volume of high yield bond issuance and no.1in high-yield transactions in 2004. It also held no 3 position in global IPO underwriting in 2004.

The government might impose a condition of transparency while granting permission to the bank. The ministry was examining how to force this condition on Credit Suisse. It is planning to find out names of Indians having their accounts with the bank so that they can prevent them from diverting their money to Switzerland through the proposed branch.

A letter dated September 2, emphasize that the ministry should communicate its views within 30 days to reduce the overall processing time of the bank's application. It also said that Credit Suisse complied with all the parameters as per the liberalised policy of foreign banks' presence in India.

If the ministry does not express any objections, RBI will proceed with approval of the bank. Once the ministry allows a Swiss bank in India, it will be easier for Indian banks to have access to Swiss market.

Credit Suisse Group is currently present in India through two asset management companies (AMCs) working under the Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). They are: Credit Suisse Securities (India) Private Limited and Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB).