
Having your cake and eating it
The time is right to consolidate government equity into a holding company 27 January 2021: The relative underperformance of PSU shares in the market reflects all that is wrong with the current ownership and governance structure. The more recent push back that investors have been giving board appointments in government owned companies is another wake-up call. Apathy is not a business strategy. Currently state-owned enterprises are dispersed across different ministries. For exa

The rise and fall of a banker
8 January 2021:: Guest blog/Book extract :: Pavan Lall/Yes Man - the Untold Story of Yes Bank Yes Bank received its license to commence banking the same time Kotak Mahindra Bank did. Yet, sixteen years later, one bank has grown through a combination of cautious lending and prudent management. The other is a different story. The story of Yes Bank resembles that of Icarus. Flying on wings created from feathers and wax, Icarus was warned neither to fly too low nor too high - so
A digital future for loan documentation
By invitation :: S Ramann, Managing Director and CEO, National eGovernance Services Limited 6 January 2021: Digital documentation and paperless transactions are the future of banking. Augmented by the latest technologies and a supportive regulatory environment online, paperless loans are much more dynamic and convenient and are set to become the future of loan documentation. This is the space that National E-Governance Services Ltd, a Union Government Company, registered wit

Hits & Misses: The Indian Banking Story
2021: In this guest blog Madan Sabnavis quotes extracts from his just published book ‘Hits & Misses: The Indian Banking Story’ and highlights the trends since financial sector reforms were introduced. It also raises debate on certain issues in governance in banking which goes beyond what we read in the media. The alleged irregularities witnessed in case of some of the big cases such as PNB, Yes Bank, ICICI Bank, PMC and so on are well known. But the broader issues are often

Expanding the governance agenda
1 January 2021: Even as we put 2020 behind us, the lessons it has taught us and the new way of doing business will tag along to 2021. This year will challenge boards in expanding the scope of the company’s responsibilities towards better citizenship, even as investors will increase their focus on the ESG agenda and the company’s governance structure. Board accountability will be set at higher standards. And regulators will need to build capacity to improve enforcement. Read t