| Bajaj Electricals rejigs business
After the main Bajaj Group led by Bajaj Auto, it is now the turn of the other extended family arm, Bajaj Electricals, to realign its businesses. Shekhar Bajaj, Chairman and Managing Director of Bajaj Electricals, is redefining responsibilities in the two most important units of the company. Under the plan, Anant Bajaj, Shekhar Bajaj's son, is set to take complete responsibility of the Rs 500-crore company's export-import businesses and its new arm, Bajaj International, which plays a crucial role in view of the company's outsourcing of goods from China. R Ramakrishnan, additional director at Bajaj Electricals, is being promoted to be executive director of the company. This would effectively define his role inside the boundaries of the company's electricals and electrical appliances business.The company has also proposed to enhance his salary from the current 1.5 lakh per month to a scale of 1.5-3 lakh per month in view of his new responsibilities, according to the company's annual report.
IMF Executive Board Concludes the Article IV Consultation with Tunisia
On August 3, 2007, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with Tunisia.1 Background Effective economic management and an outwards-oriented development strategy have contributed to placing Tunisia's economic performance over the past decade among the best in the region, with real GDP growth averaging almost 5 percent in a stable macroeconomic environment. Over the past two years, the Tunisian economy has shown resilience in the face of surging prices of oil and other imported commodities, sustaining relatively strong growth while maintaining macroeconomic stability. Real GDP growth accelerated from 4 percent in 2005 to 5.4 percent in 2006 owing to a rebound in agricultural output, expansion of nontextile manufacturing, and vitality of the services sector.
Barbican saga: Reserve Bank lays bare the facts
This is the second of a three-part series on the events leading to the collapse of Barbican Bank. In this instalment the Registrar of Banks lifts the lid on breaches of the Banking Act, externalisation of funds, poor corporate governance practices, over-reliance on non-core business, and creative accounting.
Investigation of Barbican Bank — January 2004
THE prudential liquidity ratio fell sharply from 82 percent to 8 percent for the period September to December 2003. The deposit level dropped by 97 percent from $12,74 billion recorded on December 15 2003 to $0,243 billion as at February 16 2004.
The liquidity problems at the bank were attributed to a number of factors as follows:
l Imprudent asset-liability management practices: The bank heavily relied on short-term deposits to finance long-term assets.
MGIC says it can back out of Radian deal
MILWAUKEE (AP) - MGIC Investment Corp. (Nachrichten) said Tuesday it does not believe it has to complete its purchase of Radian Group Inc., (Nachrichten) after their joint interest in a mortgage investor became all but worthless. The stock deal was originally valued at nearly $4.9 billion, but shares of both companies have lost more than half their value since it was announced Feb. 6. The deal would exchange 0.9658 share of MGIC for each Radian share, and it valued Radian at $60.78 per share, three times the current price. Trading of both companies' shares was halted Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange. MGIC rose $1.60, or 4.8 percent, to $34.88 before the halt, while Radian slipped $2.38, or 10.3 percent, to $20.85. Last week, private-mortgage insurer MGIC Investment and credit risk manager Radian Group revealed their investments in subprime mortgage investor C-Bass LLC could be worthless.
M&A deals hit £75bn as FTSE stays bullish
MORE than two thirds (68%) of chief executives with FTSE-350 companies expect to be involved in a merger or acquisition over the next 12 months. The research from Close Brothers, a top independent corporate finance houses, shows that a significant level of interest in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) continues despite macro-economic conditions that are leading some people to say the market had reached its peak and warn that M&A activity is set to diminish. The bullish rhetoric from FTSE 350 companies reflects the level of M&A these companies have initiated over the last year. In the 12 months to the end of June 2007, FTSE 350 companies were responsible for 430 M&A deals, valued at more than £75bn. Chief executive of Close Brothers Richard Grainger said, "Despite what the doom-mongers might be saying this research shows that UK corporates remain alive to M&A opportunities.
Uganda: KCB Abandons Takeover Driven Expansion Into Uganda Market
Over the last one year, KCB has been desperately angling for a piece of either Crane Bank or Development Finance Company of Uganda (DFCU) as a linchpin to the Ugandan market. After months of negotiations with the two banks, the talks finally came to the acquisition price and KCB's management hoped to close the deal by December to make way for a market entry next year. .
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