The Hindu Business Line : Bank of India plans to expand overseas

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Mangalore Feb 18 Bank of India, which gets 20 per cent of business from its foreign presence, is now planning to expand its overseas network either by setting up new branches and representative offices or by establishing subsidiaries in other countries.

The bank - which recently acquired majority stake in PT Bank Swadesi Tbk of Indonesia - is happy about the increasing trend in bilateral trade between India and Indonesia.

Mr M. Balachandran, Chairman and Managing Director, told newspersons that the bank is in the process of acquiring 76 per cent stake in Bank Swadesi, which is a listed bank with forex licence.

Mr Balachandran said that the bank will soon open a branch in Antwerp in Belgium and set up a 100 per cent owned subsidiary in Tanzania. It has got approvals for setting up a representative office in South Africa and Doha.

"The Reserve Bank of India has given approval to set up a branch at the Dubai international financial centre and a subsidiary in Canada." The bank also plans to set up a branch in Vietnam, where it has a representative office.

In commemoration of the bank's centenary, 128 villages have been identified for development as model villages.

Highlighting the `e-grama' project of the bank, Mr Balachandran said that it is an initiative for setting up IT kiosks in rural areas of Karnataka and Gujarat.

The bank has set up a mobile ATM with biometric access in Tamil Nadu; one such unit will be put in operation in Vidarbha this month, he said.

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