Date:24/04/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/04/24/stories/2006042403451400.htm

Back Union Bank eyes 28 pc growth

M. Ramesh

MR M.V.NAIR

Chennai , April 23

Union Bank of India has set itself a business target of Rs 1,60,000 crore for the current year — 28 per cent more than last year's turnover of Rs 1,25,000 crore, the bank's Chairman and Managing Director, Mr M.V. Nair, said today.

Addressing a press conference here at the end of its `annual business plan conference,' Mr Nair said he expected deposits to go up from Rs 74,000 crore to Rs 90,000 crore and advances from Rs 54,500 crore to Rs 70,000 crore.

The bank intends to double its ATM network to 1,000 machines and raise the number of its branches by 100, to 2183 in the current year, Mr Nair said. For that, and for raising the number of its `core banking' branches from 780 to 1,200, the bank has budgeted for an expenditure of Rs 170 crore for the current year, he said.

Mr Nair said that the bank's investment book of Rs 25,600 crore yielded on an average 7.82 per cent. Average yield on advances worked out to 8.7 per cent.

As the yield on advances was higher than for investments, the bank pulled out resources from investments and used the money for lending. Today, the bank has barely Rs 600 crore of investments over the minimum statutory limit.

Mr Nair said that the bank had approvals to open branches in Doha and Hong Kong and representative offices in Shanghai and Dubai.