Mumbai, July 17: The State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest commercial bank, plans to launch a new investment scheme for expatriates in August or September, its managing director, P.N. Venkatachalam, said on Thursday. "The details are being worked out," Venkatachalam told reporters at a press conference.
Earlier this week, a senior SBI official said that the bank planned to raise $2 billion through a deposit scheme for expatriate investors.
The new scheme will coincide with the redemption of the Resurgent India Bonds (RIBs), which raised $4.2 billion from expatriate Indians in 1998 and are due for redemption in October.
SBI raised the amount on behalf of the federal government from expatriate Indians to shore up the country's external finances after the United States and other developed countries slapped economic sanctions against the country in retaliation for carrying out nuclear tests.
The bank will be targeting about 30-35 per cent of RIB holders through this new scheme, while the rest will be through fresh deposits. Bureau Report