Bankers' envy
The Business Today Best Banks Awards ceremony had banks celebrating rapid expansion of their business and an accelerating GDP.
When the business you are in has expanded to $1.3 trillion from $250 billion in the last 10 years, the mood is likely to be celebratory. That's exactly how it was at the eighth edition of Business Today's Best Banks Awards on December 8 in Mumbai. That the awards came at a time when the Indian economy was showing a near-nine per cent GDP growth was bubbly on ice. The awards are based on an annual survey, now in its sixteenth year, Business Today undertakes together with KPMG.
Aroon Purie, Editor-in-Chief of India Today Group, of which Business Today is part, kicked off the awards ceremony by explaining how Indian banking is in a position of strength because it has stuck to what the West likes to describe as boring banking - as opposed to what, in hindsight, now looks like reckless banking, he added.
The banking sector's asset size of 134 per cent of GDP, the doubling of return on assets, and the spread of bank branches and ATMs all indicate a transformed model of banking in India from 10 years ago, Ravi Trivedi, KPMG's Executive Director said introducing the survey methodology.
In his keynote address, chief guest Dr C. Rangarajan, Chairman of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council, applauded the progress made by Indian banking in the last four decades. Bank deposits as a proportion of GDP at market prices stood at 18 per cent in 1969-70, rising to 45 per cent in 1995 and 73 per cent today.
The global financial crisis should not result in a regulatory overkill, Dr Rangarajan cautioned. "Too little regulation will lead to financial instability but, too much of it can impede innovations. Policymakers will need to strike a balance between the need for financial innovations which is necessary for growth and for regulations which will ensure stability," he said.
Prior to giving away the awards, in a question and answer session moderated by Chaitanya Kalbag, Editor, Business Today, Dr Rangarajan insisted India's caution with capital convertibility had stood the country in good stead. India should enable business institutions to access cheaper funds from capital markets abroad, he added.
Award winners of the evening were Axis Bank, YES Bank, IDBI Bank, Andhra Bank, State Bank of Hyderabad, J&K Bank, DBS Bank, BNP Paribas, Bank of America, and Bank of Nova Scotia. Shikha Sharma, Managing Director and CEO of Axis Bank, was clear who deserved the accolades. "All credit goes to my entire team who have helped in achieving this glory," she said.
The presenting sponsor of the awards event was Marathon Group, whose Managing Director Mayur Shah made a presentation on his company and a 26-storeyed commercial project at Lower Parel in Mumbai. AGC Networks' Joint Managing Director and President Anil Nair drew attention to how technology could lower distribution costs and make financial inclusion viable. Other sponsors included knowledge partner KPMG, media partner Bloomberg UTV and beverage partner Whyte & Mackay.
Aroon Purie, Editor-in-Chief of India Today Group, of which Business Today is part, kicked off the awards ceremony by explaining how Indian banking is in a position of strength because it has stuck to what the West likes to describe as boring banking - as opposed to what, in hindsight, now looks like reckless banking, he added.
The banking sector's asset size of 134 per cent of GDP, the doubling of return on assets, and the spread of bank branches and ATMs all indicate a transformed model of banking in India from 10 years ago, Ravi Trivedi, KPMG's Executive Director said introducing the survey methodology.
Standing tall: (L to R) Kaku Nakhate, Country Head, Bank of America; B.P. Singh, Deputy MD, IDBI Bank; Naresh Makhijani, Executive Director, KPMG; Rajat Monga, CFO, YES Bank; Jacques Michel, Country Head, BNP Paribas; Rana Kapoor, Founder, CEO & MD, YES Bank; Aroon Purie, Editor-in-Chief, India Today Group; Chaitanya Kalbag, Editor, Business Today; S. K. Bhatt, Vice President, J&K Bank; Dr C. Rangarajan, Chairman, Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council; Chetan Shah, Vice Chairman, Marathon; Shikha Sharma, MD & CEO, Axis Bank; Mayur Shah, MD, Marathon; Anil Girotra, Executive Director, Andhra Bank; Renu Challu, MD, State Bank of Hyderabad; Sethuraman Sathappan, Assistant GM, Bank of Nova Scotia; Anindya Datta, CMO, YES Bank; Anil Nair, Joint MD & President, AGC Networks; and Sanjiv Bhasin, Country Head, DBS Bank
In his keynote address, chief guest Dr C. Rangarajan, Chairman of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council, applauded the progress made by Indian banking in the last four decades. Bank deposits as a proportion of GDP at market prices stood at 18 per cent in 1969-70, rising to 45 per cent in 1995 and 73 per cent today.
The global financial crisis should not result in a regulatory overkill, Dr Rangarajan cautioned. "Too little regulation will lead to financial instability but, too much of it can impede innovations. Policymakers will need to strike a balance between the need for financial innovations which is necessary for growth and for regulations which will ensure stability," he said.
Prior to giving away the awards, in a question and answer session moderated by Chaitanya Kalbag, Editor, Business Today, Dr Rangarajan insisted India's caution with capital convertibility had stood the country in good stead. India should enable business institutions to access cheaper funds from capital markets abroad, he added.
Award winners of the evening were Axis Bank, YES Bank, IDBI Bank, Andhra Bank, State Bank of Hyderabad, J&K Bank, DBS Bank, BNP Paribas, Bank of America, and Bank of Nova Scotia. Shikha Sharma, Managing Director and CEO of Axis Bank, was clear who deserved the accolades. "All credit goes to my entire team who have helped in achieving this glory," she said.
The presenting sponsor of the awards event was Marathon Group, whose Managing Director Mayur Shah made a presentation on his company and a 26-storeyed commercial project at Lower Parel in Mumbai. AGC Networks' Joint Managing Director and President Anil Nair drew attention to how technology could lower distribution costs and make financial inclusion viable. Other sponsors included knowledge partner KPMG, media partner Bloomberg UTV and beverage partner Whyte & Mackay.
