ICICI Bank gets nod for New York branch

The US Federal Reserve has granted permission to ICICI Bank, the second largest financial lender in India with assets over $91 billion, to open a branch here.

The branch would engage in wholesale banking, including trade financing and factoring services, to US-based subsidiaries of Indian firms, the Federal Reserve said.

The bank, the Fed said, has policies and procedures to comply with the Indian laws and regulations and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines regarding anti-money laundering. Besides, it has also taken additional steps on its own to combat money laundering and other illicit activities. The bank's application, they said, met the requirements of International Banking Act and is also supervised by RBI.

The regulators also found ICICI Bank's risk management standards consistent with those established by the Basel Capital Accord and its capital is in excess of the minimum levels that would be required by it.

Life Insurance Corporation of India and other government-owned companies together own 9.6% shares and are the largest shareholders.
The Singapore government directly owns 1.8% of the bank's shares, while another 6.5% is indirectly owned by a wholly-owned investment firm of Singapore's Ministry of Finance.

The bank currently has a representative office in New York and operates non-banking activities. It also has centres in Canada, the UK, Bahrain, Russia and Sri Lanka.