Qatar-headquartered Doha Bank is looking at setting up base in India and is awaiting clarifications from the Reserve Bank of India to set up a branch network across the four metros, perhaps this financial year.
Mohammed Akram Hashim, Head, Retail Banking, Doha Bank, a participant at the Business Line Opportunities Fair, said that with the RBI now looking at licensing Indian corporates to set up banks, the issue of foreign banks seeking licences is likely to be taken up. The policies for foreign banks differ and the bank is seeking clarity.
He said Doha Bank has a plethora of tie-ups with Indian financial intermediaries such as India Bulls Real Estate and banks such as Axis Bank to offer seamless services to non-residents here.
“We provide customers a single window for local as well as India operations. “We have integrated our servers with Axis Bank and IndusInd Bank; so, if you’re a Doha Bank customer, you can log onto the bank’s Web site and transfer funds to your Axis Bank account. The exchange rate is offered automatically; it’s all very seamless” he explained.
K.V. Rama Moorthy, CEO, GCC Operations, Bank of Baroda, also a participant at the fair, said that after HSBC and Standard Chartered, BoB is the largest foreign bank in the UAE, with seven branches and several customer service centres. BoB generates 90 per cent of its business in the UAE from NRIs and Rama Moorthy said the bank provides a good conduit for investments into India.