Date:06/01/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/01/06/stories/2006010602120600.htm

Back BoI gets line of credit from JBIC

Our Bureau

New Delhi , Jan. 5

BANK of India has secured a line of credit from Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) for onlending yen-denominated credit to Indian importers, Mr M. Balachandran, Chairman and Managing Director of BoI, said here today.

"There has been widespread preference for yen-denominated credit. Importers of capital goods from Japan can make good use of this facility. An amount of 5 billion yen has been sanctioned. We will do the identification, selection, sanction and recovery of funds from importers," Mr Balachandran said.

He also said that BoI recently raised $250 million through a medium-term multi-currency on-tap bond offering in the overseas markets (other than the US market). The bonds have been listed in the Singapore stock exchange, "It's a five-year money and we raised it (in the last week of December) at a cost of six-month libor plus 83 basis points," he said.

In a move aimed at motivating people to put in more deposits in the banks, BoI has increased the interest rate it offers on certain deposits by about 25 basis points.