RBI Says No To IDBI Bank Name Change Proposal

The Reserve Bank of India has turned down IDBI Bank’s proposal to change its name following the transfer of controlling a 51 percent stake to Life Insurance Corporation of India from the central government.

The board of IDBI Bank had last month sought the RBI’s approval for change in the name of the lender to either LIC IDBI Bank or LIC Bank following the takeover by the insurance behemoth.

"The board of directors has in its meeting held on March 19, 2019, taken note of the RBI's communication conveying their inability to accede to bank's request for change of name of IDBI Bank Ltd.," IDBI Bank said in a regulatory filing.

The bank, however, did not elaborate on the reasons for denial by the regulator for changing the name.

Earlier this month, the RBI changed the categorisation of IDBI Bank to a private sector lender from public sector lender following acquisition of majority stake by LIC.

Following the stake transfer, the government holding came down to 46.46 percent from nearly 86 percent in September 2018, while LIC’s stake increased from about 8 percent to 51 percent earlier this year.

In January, the insurance behemoth completed the acquisition of 51 percent controlling stake in IDBI Bank, marking the entry of the over 60 years' old state-owned insurer into the banking space.

In August last year, the cabinet had approved the acquisition of controlling stake by LIC as a promoter in the bank through a combination of preferential allotment and open offer of equity.

LIC had been looking to enter the banking space by acquiring a majority stake in IDBI Bank, as the deal is expected to provide business synergies despite the lender's stressed balance sheet.

For the third quarter ended December 2018, IDBI Bank posted widening of loss by nearly threefold to Rs 4,185.48 crore as bad loans surged.

The bank had reported a net loss of Rs 1,524.31 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.

Total income dropped to Rs 6,190.94 crore for the quarter, compared with Rs 7,125.20 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago.