RBI Asks Banks To Complete Migration By December 2012

Migrate to web protocol IPv6, RBI tells banks

MUMBAI, NOV 5: Published in Hindu Business Line

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today asked the banks to migrate to the latest version of Internet Protocol IPv6 from IPv4, preferably by December 2012.

“Since migration to IPv6 is an eventuality that has to be accepted and managed proactively, the government wants it to be done in a planned way rather than against time,” the RBI said in a notification.

Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is the latest Internet Protocol (IP), the primary communications protocol upon which the entire Internet is built. It is intended to replace the older IPv4, which is still employed for the vast majority of Internet traffic as of 2012.

The RBI further added that “they (government) have expressed that the migration of all payment gateways, banks, financial institutions, insurance companies, etc. including their websites should be completed preferably by December 2012.”

It said banks may take necessary action by forming a special team to complete the migration within the stipulated time.

As per the National Telecom Policy 2012 (NTP-2012), Internet is envisaged as a catalyst for socio-economic development of the country and as an effective medium of various citizen-centric services.

“Since the current version of Internet Protocol (IPv4) has almost run out of addresses, the broadband revolution is sure to ride on next generation Internet Protocol (IPv6).

The NTP-2012 recognises the futuristic role of IPv6 and aims to achieve substantial transition to IPv6 in the country, the RBI added further.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/banking/migrate-to-web-protocol-ipv6-rbi-tells-banks/article4067910.ece

Bank unions set the ball rolling for wage talks

Seek rise in wages and dearness allowance, better provisions for health, housing

Abhijit Lele / Mumbai Nov 06, 2012, 00:01 IST The bugle for the 10th bipartite banking sector wage agreement has been sounded, with five employee unions giving charters of demands for wage revision and service conditions to the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) last week. An official with IBA confirmed the initial interaction of the union representatives. The officers’ union would follow suit. IBA would have to secure the mandate of each bank to negotiate on their behalf. For this, banks would have to secure approvals from their boards of directors. The ninth bipartite settlement signed on April 27, 2010, between IBA, the All Indian Bank Employees’ Association (AIBEA), the National Confederation of Bank Employees, the Bank Employees Federation of India, the Indian National Bank Employees’ Federation and the National Organisation of Bank Workers was effective for the period between November 1, 2007, and October 31 this year. Some previous settlements Settlement Year Estimated gains (Rs crore) 5th Aug 1, 1979 252 6th Sep 19, 1984 388 7th Apr 10, 1989 818 8th Jun 02, 2005 1,288 9th Apr 27, 2010 2,577* *Plus pension option cost                           Source: Unions demand charter C H Venkatachalam, general secretary of AIBEA, said there was a strong case for a substantial increase in wages and allowances, along with better facilities, owing to consistently high inflation. He added job profiles had undergone change and there was a sharp rise in expenditure on housing, transportation, health care and education. In their submission, the unions said the revised wage structure from November 1 should reflect the merger of dearness allowance (DA), payable at the average index for July-September, with salaries. They have also demanded the DA be based on the Consumer Price Index 2001=100 series, instead of the 1960=100 series. They said the revision in DA should be according to a monthly variation in the index. And, every one-point rise or fall in the index should lead to a revision in the DA, they said. The DA compensation should be 110 per cent for clerical staff and 120 per cent for subordinate staff, they said. The unions said though the business volume had increased, the number of employees hadn’t risen. From 4,70,000 as on March 31, 2007, the number of employees had fallen to 4,50,000 as on March 31 this year. About 30 per cent of public sector bank employees across all levels would retire in two to three years. N Seshadri, executive director of Bank of India, said banks would provide for a wage increase on a pro rata basis from the third quarter of 2012-13. Seeking a change in the current framework for pension, unions said the New Pension Scheme (NPS) should be withdrawn and all new employees (from April 1, 2010) covered by NPS should be brought under the Pension Regulation, 1995. The cost on superannuation benefits should be over and above the negotiated wage cost, they added. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/bank-unions-setball-rolling-for-wage-talks/491788/ Higher provisioning for restructured loans credit positive for Indian banks: Moody's By     K. R. SRIVATS ------Published in Hindu Business Line NEW DELHI, NOV. 5:  The RBI’s move to hike the provision that banks need to make for restructured loans is credit positive for Indian banks, Moody’s Investor Services has said. The is because the increased provisioning will strengthen their loss absorption capacity, the international rating agency said in a note to its research clients. At the recent monetary policy review, the Reserve Bank of India hiked the provisioning on restructured loans from 2 per cent to 2.75 per cent. The move will add to bank managements’ incentive to improve loan underwriting standards to strengthen asset quality, Moody’s credit outlook said. Increased provisioning on restructured loans would result in Indian banks reporting lower net profits. But banks’ overall loss absorption capacity will benefit from higher provisioning cover, the rating agency said. The deterioration in Indian banks’ asset quality is characterised not only by a 46 per cent jump in gross non-performing assets (NPAs), but also the more than doubling of restructured loans over the past year. For public sector banks, as much as 6-10 per cent of their gross loans are restructured loans. The RBI move is also noteworthy in its timing, Moody’s said. This is because the central bank decided to implement the recommendation ahead of other recommendations from its working group. If this signals an increasing policy push on banks to improve their internal risk monitoring processes, that would be good news for bank creditors, Moody’s credit outlook said. An RBI working group tasked with reviewing the existing prudential guidelines on restructuring of loans in July submitted a report recently. The working group had, among other recommendations, proposed an increase in the provision on restructured loans to 5 per cent from 2 per cent over a two-year period.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/banking/higher-provisioning-for-restructured-loans-credit-positive-for-indian-banks-moodys/article4067201.ece