The Hindu Business Line : PNB Gilts stake sale process on, says bank

New Delhi, Sept. 5 Punjab National Bank on Friday entered into a tie-up with State-owned BSNL to enable the latter’s subscribers to utilise the bank’s ATM network for paying their telephone bills.

This bill payment facility was launched in the presence of PNB’s Chairman and Managing Director, Dr K.C.Chakrabarty, and BSNL’s Chairman and Managing Director, Mr Kuldeep Goyal, here on Friday. BSNL has 7.31 crore subscribers — 3.06 crore landline and 4.25 crore mobile.

Meanwhile, the bank maintained that there was no move to shelve the planned 74-per cent stake sale in the bank’s primary dealership arm, PNB Gilts. “The process is very much on. We are not shelving it,” Mr Ranjan Dhawan, General Manager, PNB told Business Line, refuting media reports that the bank may shelve the stake sale due to lukewarm response in the bidding process.

Estimating rates

On interest rates, Dr Chakrabarty said that interest rates would remain stable for now. He, however, expects the rates to come down after March next year.

“Interest rates are stable for now. We expect them to start easing after March 2009”, Dr Chakrabarty told reporters on the sidelines of an industry event.

Lending rates

PNB had last hiked its prime lending rate by 100 basis points and its deposit rates between 75-100 points from August 1, close on the heels of Reserve Bank of India’s move to increase short-term lending rate (repo rate) by 50 basis points and cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 25 basis points in end-July.

Taking the cue from the RBI, which has been undertaking monetary tightening to tame inflation, banks have been increasing their lending rates.

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