New Delhi | Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced on Friday the merger of 10 nationalised banks into four entities.
This announcement comes after a week when she disclosed several new measures to be taken by the Centre to boost the slowing economy, and had said that “more such sessions will be coming up”.
Fourteen public sector banks have earned profit this year, as against two last year, she said.
Sitharaman said the earlier merger of Bank of Baroda, Vijaya Bank and Dena Bank led to enhanced customization and rationalization of operations without any retrenchment.
Which banks will merge?
She declared a merger of Punjab National Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank with the business of ₹7.95 trillion to make it India’s second-largest bank. The Anchor bank will be PNB.
The other merger will be between Canara Bank and Syndicate Bank, which will make the fourth-largest bank, with ₹15.2 trillion business.
Also, Union Bank will be merged with Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank to build India’s fifth-largest public sector bank with ₹14.59 trillion in business.
Indian Bank will be merged with Allahabad Bank to make India’s seventh-largest PSB with a business of ₹8.08 trillion.
Besides banks, Sitharaman has declared additional liquidity support of ₹20,000 crore by the National Housing Bank, taking the total to ₹30,000 crore.
She said that loan recoveries have reached to a new level.
Gross NPAs have come down and the level they are at today is just 7.9% as of March 2019, she assured. The figures have come down to Rs. 7.9 lakh crores.
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