Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC), the Delhi, India-based public lender, is on the look out to acquire lenders to strengthen its presence in South India, reported Business Standard citing a senior bank official.
The official said: “The bank has a strong presence in the Northern region. We can take over a South-based bank having synergies to expand business in the region.”
Reportedly, OBC has licence to start 117 branches across India during the current fiscal. The bank aims to focus on semi-urban and rural areas, and plans to open around 200 new branches annually in the next three financial years.
OBC, which is reported to have a capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of close to 13%, intends to raise further capital through bonds to fund acquisitions. OBC has already raised INR3bn from bonds during December 2009 and has even requested the government to provide capital support to the tune of INR10bn for the credit growth in the coming years, reported the newspaper.
