New Delhi, Mar 24 () State-run Indian Bank and Syndicate Bank on Tuesday announced safety measures for their employees and customers amid the coronavirus outbreak that has forced people to stay indoors. Syndicate Bank said ATM, branch banking and door step banking will be restricted and may be closed if necessary, depending upon the situation. This is being implemented to ensure minimum human contact. However, banking through digital channels like mobile and internet banking shall remain open, Syndicate Bank said in a release. Rolling out Pay Safe-Stay Safe campaign for its customers and medical support for its staff, Indian Bank said banks and ATMs are crucial places which are frequented by the public in large numbers. This human contact might prove to be a hindrance in arresting the rapid spread of this virus as feared by the medical fraternity, it added. Indian Bank MD and CEO Padmaja Chunduru said, "We are concerned about the well-being of our customers during these trying times and hence, request them to opt for the Banks' seamless Digital Banking Services (DBS)." She urged the customers to act upon the government's and medical practitioners' directive to avoid public places, adding an enhanced DBS is the bank's attempt in that direction. Indian Bank said about 50 per cent of its employees would be present in each branch on any given day and non-critical roles would be identified to enable implementation of the work-from-home policy. "We have entered into tie-ups with a few hospitals on a tele link with a doctor for preliminary consultation if any of our employees shows any symptoms. We would also assist in arranging for testing, as required," Indian Bank said. If any employee tests positive, paid leave would be granted for treatment time. Meanwhile, all branches and offices have been advised to down shutters by 7 pm and ensure that adequate sanitisation measures of the premises are carried out, it added. Syndicate Bank said its branches will not offer passbook printing services to avoid possible contact with the affected and asked customers to avail such facilities digitally. "Self-isolation and social distancing are a must to ensure safety of people and society at large...Syndicate Bank will continue to do whatever is necessary to curtail spread of this virus while ensuring customer service as well as employee safety is met simultaneously," said Mrutyunjay Mahapatra, MD and CEO, Syndicate Bank. The lender said that these measures are being implemented with immediate effect. Earlier on Monday, the umbrella body Indian Banks' Association had asked all member banks to ensure that all customers are provided uninterrupted services. KPM ABM

Syndicate Bank, Indian Bank announce safety measures for staff, customers amid virus lockdown

The entire list and exciting facts about the 30 assembly constituencies going to polls in West Bengal on March 27

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Nir EliasAn employee checks cannabis plants at a medical marijuana plantation in northern Israel March 21, 2017</div></div></div><ul><li>Imperial Brands' venture arm invested in Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies, a UK-based <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/category/biotech">biotech</a> company, along with Casa Verde Capital.</li><li>Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies is researching and developing compounds in the cannabis plant that can be used for drugs.</li><li>It's one of the first concrete signs the tobacco industry is embracing <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/category/cannabis">cannabis</a>.</li></ul>One of the world's largest tobacco companies is getting into cannabis.Imperial Brands participated through its venture arm in a Series A fundraising round for <a href="https://www.oxcantech.com/">Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies</a> (OCT). Snoop Dogg's cannabis-focused venture firm, <a href="http://www.casaverdecapital.com/">Casa Verde Capital,</a> also participated in the round.While OCT did not publicly disclose the size of the round, sources close to the deal confirmed to Business Insider that nearly $10 million was raised.It's one of the first concrete signs that the tobacco industry is embracing cannabis, and positioning itself for a future with less demand for cigarettes. "We are pleased to be partnering with OCT," Matthew Phillips, the chief development officer of Imperial Ventures, said in a statement. "Cannabinoid products have significant potential and our investment enables Imperial to support OCT's important research while building a deeper understanding of the medical cannabis market." The move is a sign of a larger shift within Imperial, which is behind popular cigarette brands like Kool, Salem, and Winston. Imperial added a Canadian cannabis executive, Simon Langelier, to its board last year. The company has <a href="http://www.imperialbrandsplc.com/">also started moving</a> beyond cigarettes to focus more on pharmaceuticals, vaporizers, and other consumer products. The UK-based OCT is researching cannabinoid compounds to test which can be turned into effective drugs or treatments. Like other research-stage biotech companies, it's working on developing intellectual property around these compounds. "Funding research into cannabinoids can be challenging," Karan Wadhera, the managing partner of Casa Verde, told Business Insider over the phone. "It's a fantastic opportunity to support the growth of the medicinal side of the cannabis industry."Wadhera compared OCT to the more well-known GW Pharmaceuticals, which recently got its marijuana-based epilepsy drug, Epidiolex, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/marijuana-epilepsy-drug-approved-fda-2018-5">approved</a> by the Food and Drug Administration. The drug uses <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/marijuana-cbd-boom-cbd-2018-6">CBD</a>, a compound found in the cannabis plant that doesn't get you high. Wadhera said the FDA's approval of Epidiolex will "open the doors" to cutting-edge research on cannabinoids - active compounds within the marijuana plant - presenting a huge opportunity for biotech and pharmaceutical companies.Neil Mahapatra, the managing partner of Kingsley Capital Partners, a London-based firm that owns the largest chunk of OCT, told Business Insider in an email that the market for cannabis-based drugs is "opening up across the world.""In the past two years alone, very significant countries have created new cannabis markets: Germany, Australia, and Poland to name a few," Mahapatra said. "And the growth is almost just beginning: if you look at the size of the alcohol and pharmaceutical industries now, that's what the size of the cannabis market could reach."Momentum around medical marijuana is sweeping the US: Oklahoma, one of the most conservative states, recently <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/oklahoma-medical-cannabis-legalization-2018-6">legalized medical marijuana</a> for patients over the age of 18. <h2>Read more cannabis industry coverage:</h2><ul><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/marijuana-industry-rising-investment-stars-2018-3">The rising stars of marijuana's investment scene that everyone from Wall Street to Silicon Valley should know</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/marijuana-private-equity-fund-manager-investments-2018-6">A top cannabis private equity fund manager reveals how he picks companies to invest in</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-choose-marijuana-investments-according-to-privateer-ceo-2018-4">The CEO of a Peter Thiel-backed cannabis private equity firm reveals his 3-pronged strategy for choosing investments</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/marijuana-industry-quietly-dominated-by-canaccord-genuity-2018-5">This investment bank is quietly dominating the booming marijuana industry - but big banks are starting to muscle their way in</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/green-bits-cannabis-tech-tiger-global-2018-4">A $22 billion investment firm led one of the largest ever funding rounds for a cannabis tech company - here's why it's a big deal for the industry</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/shopify-plan-dominate-marijuana-industry-2018-5">Inside Shopify's strategy for dominating the booming cannabis industry</a></li></ul> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/controlling-weather-in-future-2018-5">How we'll control the weather in 100 years</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

One of the world's largest tobacco giants is teaming up with Snoop Dogg's VC firm to invest in medical cannabis research

(Eds: Adding details, recoveries) Bhubaneswar, Jul 11 () Odisha's tally of coronavirus cases rose by 570 to reach 12,526 on Saturday while five more people succumbed to the disease, taking the death toll to 61 in the state, a health department official said. Of the new fatalities, two were reported from Ganjam district, which is worst-hit by the infection, and one each from Puri, Cuttack and Khurda, he said. Odisha also reported recovery of 388 patients. The total number of recoveries is now 8,360, which is 66.74 per cent of the total 12,526 cases. The fatality rate stands at 0.48 per cent, the official said. "Regret to inform the demise of five COVID-19 positive patients while under treatment in hospitals," he said. Two men, aged 55 and 72, succumbed to the disease in Ganjam, while a 70-year-old man suffering from diabetes and hypertension died in Puri, the official said. "A 56-year-old woman from Khurda, who was a diabetic, and a 46-year-old man from Cuttack also died. The man had diabetes, hypertension and hypothyroidism," he said. The official said a 62-year-old woman from Kendrapara district, who had tested positive for COVID-19, died, but the "cause of her death was brain tumour". He added that she was also suffering from diabetes, hypertension and asthma. Of the total 61 deaths reported so far, Ganjam accounts for 36, followed by Khurda nine, Cuttack six, Puri two and Angul, Bargarh, Bhadrak, Gajapati, Jajpur, Kendrapara, Rayagada and Sundergarh one each. The state has added 5,210 positive cases and 36 deaths in just 10 days.While the state's total viral load was 7,316 on July 1, it increased to 12,526 on July 11. Similarly, the death toll also increased to 61 from 25 on July 1. In regard to Saturday's 570 new cases, 384 were reported from different quarantine centres, while 186 were detected through contact-tracing exercises. The highest of 218 fresh cases have been reported from Ganjam, followed by Cuttack (46), Sundergarh (44), Jajpur (40), Khurda (37), Nayagarh (37), Jharsuguda (31), Gajapati (25), Jagatsinghpur (16) and Puri (15). Fourteen new cases were detected in Keonjhar, 11 each in Angul and Koraput, and 10 in Mayurbhanj. Five other districts also reported fresh COVID-19 cases but the numbers are in single digit. With the new cases, fresh recoveries and fatalities, the number of active cases in Odisha now stands at 4,087, the official said. He added that a total of 5,845 samples were tested for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours. Keeping in view the surge of cases in July, the state government on Saturday increased the bed capacity in COVID Care Centres and Hospitals. Additional chief secretary, Health and Family Welfare PK Mahapatra said 500 beds have been increased in the COVID Care Centre of the Hi-Tech Medical College and Hospital, while in two COVID Care Centres under the SUM Hospital at Jamujhari and Jatni, 800 and 300 beds, respectively, have been added. Meanwhile, in a bid to contain the spread of the disease in the state capital, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation in association with the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) on Saturday began serology surveillance. "The aim of the surveillance is to ascertain the immunological status of the community and high-risk groups in the city," said RMRC director Saghamitra Pati. To boost the treatment capacity for the COVID-19 patients, the state government is taking expeditious steps to develop the SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack, as a hub for Plasma Therapy. This will help critical patients and aid in their recovery from the coronaVirus, Dr Jayanta Ponda, the technical advisor to the health department, said. Several district administrations like those of Ganjam, Gajapati, Malkangiri, Angul and Dhenkanal have imposed restriction on movement of people to and from other hotspot districts within the state. On Saturday, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik spoke to BJP MLA from Nilagiri, Sukanta Kumar Nayak, and ruling BJD lawmaker from Salipur, Prasant Behera, over phone and enquired about their health condition. He wished for their speedy recovery and also talked to other health workers and front line fighters being treated after contracting the infection. Meanwhile, a naib sarpanch and 10 others were arrested for violating social distancing norms by organising a religious function where many people had gathered at a village in Ganjam district recently, police said. Krushna Chandra Jena, Naib Sarpanch of J Dengapadar panchayat, along with some others, including a priest, had performed a yagna for establishment of a temple at Mardharajpur village under Polasara area on July 7 where several people had congregated, said Inspector In-Charge of Polasara police station, Jitendra Kumar Mallick. Ganjam district Collector Vijay Amrit Kulange said the naib sarpanch and 10 others have been arrested for violating social distancing norms during the programme organized in Mardarajpur village and a report has been sent to the government for further action. AAM SKN RG ANB ANB

Odisha's COVID-19 tally mounts to 12,526, death toll climbs to 61

Mumbai, Feb 1 () Bankers said the Union Budget is a balanced one as it maintains fiscal prudence for the medium-term and also offers more capital spending to support the sagging growth.
 The budget has pegged fiscal deficit at 3.8 percent for the current fiscal and 3.5 percent for the next, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while presenting the first full budget of the Modi government's second term.
 Bankers said given the deepening slowdown, the move was much needed and it will boost government spending to support economic growth.
 Welcoming the budget, State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Rajnish Kumar said the proposals will ensure better infrastructure with better connectivity on one hand and improved healthcare and better access to education on the other and both will have long lasting impacts.
 "The new income tax regime without exemptions is a move to a regime of a simplified and clutter-free taxation," he said, adding the five-fold hike in deposit insurance limit to Rs 5 lakh was long overdue.
 He also said the relaxation in the Sarfaesi norms for NBFCs will lead to better recovery and borrower discipline in this sector. "Overall, the budget numbers are realistic and the staggered transition to a lower fiscal deficit is in perfect consonance with the growth objective," Kumar said.
 HDFC Bank's Chief Economist Abheek Barua sees the budgetary numbers as credible in terms of the fiscal math as it has correctly recognised revenue shortfall this year. "It uses up the 50 bps point leeway that the FRBM Act provides for both FY20 and FY21 which is a welcome step," Barua said.
 The 13 per cent spike in capital expenditure in FY21 with increased allocations for education, healthcare and certain schemes in the agricultural sector are big positives, he said, but was quick to add "that said, this expenditure increase, coupled with income tax cuts, does not seem to suggest a large fiscal stimulus that the current slowdown perhaps warranted."
 The tax breaks offered to foreign investors and specifically to sovereign wealth funds, acknowledge the fact that there is a fundamental mismatch between supply of domestic savings and capital needed for accelerated growth, he said, adding this along with the abolishment of dividend distribution tax is likely to help attract foreign fund flows.
 Budget finely balances the objectives of supporting growth while adhering to fiscal prudence in the medium-term, Standard Chartered India Chief Executive Zarin Daruwala said.
 Yes Bank Managing Director Ravneet Gill said the budget reiterates the goal of fiscal consolidation by targeting a fiscal deficit at 3.5 percent next fiscal year after slipping it by 50 bps at 3.8 per cent for FY20.
 ICICI Bank's B Prasanna said the budget is focused on holistic growth objectives by resorting to the escape clause permitted by the FRBM Act even as the commitment to consolidation remains in place.
 Gill said the higher budgetary provision for the rural sector at 13.4 per cent in FY21 will help boost rural purchasing power.
 On the investment front, increase in the capital expenditure ratio to a four-year high of 1.8 per cent of GDP generates hope of crowding in of private investment, Gill said. 
 While there is an allocation across many segments, the budget does not have a significant thrust on any one particular sector or a "big bang" announcement, Kotak Mahindra Bank's Shanti Ekambaram said, adding "a lot was expected to give a big boost to infrastructure, but perhaps the devil is in the details."
 The rural economy including agriculture, which is a very critical component of the economy, received a lot of granular allocation, she said. 
 Bank of India Managing Director A K Das said the budget is forward looking as it aims to revive demand and growth.
 "The feel good elements include sizeable increase in DICGC insurance threshold, subordinate debt facility and extension of restructuring window for MSMEs, liquidity support to NBFCs and tax holiday in the affordable housing segment," Das said.
 Syndicate Bank Managing Director Mrutyunjay Mahapatra, said the budget is a combination of continuation of the initiatives, prioritisation and incentivisation of key focus areas and a set of new experiments.
 StanChart's Daruwala further said the budget rightly attempts to boost spending by enhancing non-tax revenues through higher disinvestments including stake sale in LIC and IDBI Bank.
 Bandhan Bank's Chandra Shekhar Ghosh said hiking deposit insurance to Rs 5 lakh will help drive confidence among banking depositors.
 DBS Bank India's Surojit Shome said the budget reflects the government intent to boost consumption and support inclusive growth. The revision of the income tax rates and the option for individuals to opt for a simpler and lower tax regime is likely to incentivise consumer spending and stimulate demand, Shome said. HV BEN ABM
ABM

Bankers say balanced budget to spur growth, draw in investment

<ul><li>In June, the interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal said that preparations were underway to fill 30 high-level roles at state-owned banks. </li><li>On 19 September, the government named the heads of 10 public-sector banks. Five of these people served as deputy MDs of State Bank of India. </li><li>Meanwhile, the RBI decided to limit the tenure of <keyword id="128581" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rana-Kapoor">Rana Kapoor</keyword>, the CEO of private sector lender Yes Bank, to 31 January 2019. </li></ul>Not only have India’s public-sector banks had to contend with the lion’s share of the banking sector’s bad loans and a run of quarterly losses, but they have also faced a crisis of leadership as the CEO position at most of them have been lying vacant for the past few months. This has translated into consistent lapses in governance and delays in strategic decisions on issues like restructuring. While <keyword id="6358006" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="andhra-bank">Andhra Bank</keyword>, Punjab &amp; Sind Bank and Dena Bank have been “head-less” for nearly a year, the CEOs of Bank of Maharashtra and <keyword id="6358005" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="allahabad-bank">Allahabad Bank</keyword> were removed from their positions earlier this year owing to allegations of corruption. The Indian government has made a conscious effort to correct this. In June, the interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal said that preparations were underway to fill <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/govt-aims-to-fill-30-vacant-posts-at-psbs-in-a-month-piyush-goyal/articleshow/64512914.cms">30 high-level roles</a> at state-owned banks. At the time, Goyal said the appointments would be finalised within a month. Now, two and a half months later, the appointments committee of <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword>’s Cabinet has finally named the heads of 10 public-sector banks. And it looks they’ve played a game of musical chairs, choosing from the top ranks of these banks and switching people around. Five of these people served deputy managing directors at State Bank of India, the country’s largest bank. Padmaja Chundru will take over the reins of <keyword id="66841" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Bank">Indian Bank</keyword>, Pallav Mohapatra will lead Central Bank of India while Mrutyunjay Mahapatra and J Packirisamy will head Andhra Bank and <keyword id="6368628" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="syndicate-bank">Syndicate Bank</keyword>, respectively. The government has also appointed Karnam Shekhar as the CEO of Dena Bank, which is slated to merge with Bank of Baroda and Vijaya Bank within a year. In addition to the aforementioned appointments, Ashok Kumar Pradhan has been promoted from executive director (ED) of Andhra Bank to its CEO while the ED of Syndicate Bank, S S Mallikarjuna Rao, has been made the CEO of Allahabad Bank. Finally, A S Rajeev, the ED of Indian Bank, has been appointed the CEO of Bank of Maharashtra and Atul Kumar Goel, the ED of Union Bank of India, and S Harisankar, the ED of Allahabad Bank, will take over <keyword id="49007" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uco-Bank">UCO Bank</keyword> and Punjab and Sind Bank, respectively. Meanwhile, as the government fills up vacancies at public sector banks, it is also opening them up at private sector ones. On 19 September, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gave Rana Kapoor, the CEO of Yes Bank, until 31 January to hang up his boots. Earlier this year, the RBI also refused to greenlight the re-appointment of Shikha Sharma as the CEO of Axis Bank.

The Indian government has finally appointed the CEOs of 10 “head-less” public-sector banks

The Indian banking sector is claiming that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=chatbots&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">chatbots</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=artificial+intelligence&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Artificial Intelligence</a> won’t take away jobs, even as the financial sector wants technology to give enhanced customer experience. 
 Many experts have said AI will results in job losses in various sectors, however, banks say <keyword id="6373684" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="chatbots">chatbots</keyword> and AI will just compliment the staff members. 
 
It is worth mentioning the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=sbi&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">State Bank of India </a>(SBI) is working with IBM to make use of Watson - an answering computer software to assist staff and employees. 
 
Even <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=hdfc&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">HDFC Bank</a> has tied up with <keyword id="107950" type="TECHNOLOGY" weightage="20" keywordseo="artificial-intelligence">artificial intelligence</keyword> firm <keyword id="6371175" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Niki">Niki</keyword> to bring in conversational banking. Similarly, Yes Bank along with <keyword id="3340799" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Payjo">Payjo</keyword> will launch AI-led digital initiatives. 
 
"We find that chatbots are useful for employees. For instance, if an employee has entered a particular screen and does not know how to proceed, the software will sense inactivity and a bot will pop-up offering assistance," Mrutyunjay Mahapatra, deputy MD and chief information officer, SBI, told ET. 
 Nitin Chugh, digital banking head <keyword id="6357149" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="HDFC-bank">HDFC Bank</keyword>, told ET the website chatbot has seen one lakh conversations in one week, with the bot concurrently running 700-750 conversations. 
 
However, he says bots are not there to replace customer executives. "In any case the routine queries are moving to the self-service mode. Most of the calls now pertain to when the caller is worried about a transaction and wants to speak to a human," Chugh told ET.

This sector won’t see job losses due to chatbots, artificial intelligence

West Bengal election results 2021: Trinamool Congress scores a double century but Mamata Banerjee loses Nandigram

India is facing its biggest ever breaches of financial data. The breach is said to have originated in malware introduced in systems of Hitachi Payment Services, enabling fraudsters to steal information allowing them to steal funds. 
 Following this, banks are going to replace or ask their customers to change security codes. As many as 3.2 million debit cards have been hit and if you are a customer of State Bank of India, <keyword id="45123" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="HDFC">HDFC</keyword> Bank, ICICI Bank, YES Bank and <keyword id="6355975" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Axis-Bank">Axis Bank</keyword>, you should probably speak with the bank representatives. 
 
As per various reports, Several victims have reported unauthorised usage from locations in China. Out of 3.2 million debit cards, 2.6 million are said to be on the Visa and Master-Card platform and 600,000 on the RuPay platform. 
 
Now, Payments Council of India has ordered a forensic audit on Indian bank servers and systems to detect the origin of frauds that might have hit customer accounts. 
 NPCI Managing Director AP Hota told ET, “We have received complaints from banks about debit cards being used in China which aroused suspicion. Though most of the suspected fraudulent transactions happened in the Visa and <keyword id="6368201" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="MasterCard">MasterCard</keyword> network, we thought a whole a forensic audit of the entire network will help us find out where the compromise happened.” 
 
"Besides advising those customers who we know have used a non-HDFC Bank ATM in the recent past to change (their) ATM PIN, we are advising our customers to use only HDFC Bank ATMs as we believe security controls at some of the other bank ATMs may not be at par with HDFC Bank ATMs," a HDFC spokesperson told ET. 
 
On Wednesday, 600,000 SBI debit cards were hit and the bank has now asked customers to change their PIN numbers as well. 
 
"Based on the complaints we have received, we are suspecting a compromise on the non-SBI ATM network which could include various white-label ATM service providers. Therefore, as a precautionary measure, we have blocked six lakh debit cards. We have assured our customers that there has not been any breach on the ATM network of SBI," SBI Chief Information Officer Mrutyunjay Mahapatra told ET. 
 
Banks had been receiving multiple complaints from customers about cards being used in China at various ATMs and point of sale terminals. They in turn alerted Visa and MasterCard. A forensic audit is being conducted by Bengaluru-based payment security specialist SISA.

This may be one of India’s biggest financial data breaches; 3.2 million debit cards of SBI, HDFC, ICICI, YES Bank and Axis hit

To catch up with rising new-age <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=payment+banks">payments banks</a>, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=mobile+wallets">mobile wallets</a> and digital currencies, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=state+bank+of+India">State Bank of India</a> (SBI) is now looking to engage with early-stage <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=startup">startups</a> and outpace its rivals. 
 
The SBI wanted to understand its tech-savvy rivals and tap the potential of ventures at an early stage, for which a team lead by SBI Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya visited startup hub <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=bengaluru">Bengaluru</a> and attended a session on how <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=disruptive+technologies">disruptive technologies</a> and fledgling ventures were taking over the <keyword id="622831" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="financial-services-industry">financial services industry</keyword>. 
 <keyword id="6362513" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Startups">Startups</keyword> like en-Stage, Novopay, Happay, Vote4Cash, Probe Equity and Capital Float informed SBI on how point-solution startups will take over the financial services industry, if the banking industry did not act on time and came out with new-age solutions. 
 
"We were surprised to see how these people are developing/working on technologies to solve some of the problems we didn't even know existed. It was very interesting to see how point solutions by start-ups have the potential to impact the banking industry,” SBI Chief Information Officer Mrutyunjay Mahapatra told Economic Times in an e-mailed response. 
 
As per reports, a number of old-worldly Indian businesses are now launching corporate accelerator programmes and incubators to leverage the potential of startups. 
 
Due to this, traditional financial services giants, including SBI, are facing disruption. 
 
"The rise of smartphones, payment bank licences from RBI, unified payment interface from the National Payment Corporation of India, the huge amount of global capital coming into the payment industry will all lead to disruption," Infosys cofounder and former chairman of the UIDAI <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=nandan+nilekani">Nandan Nilekani</a> told ET in an interview last week. 
 
Nilekani added that the recharge alone is 3.6-billion transactions a month. “It is up to existing banks and others to create disruption or else a new startup will come and do it. I think it is very fertile situation for that,” he told ET. 
 
Meanwhile, to engage with startups, SBI has decided to partner with iSPIRT. "SBI, as the leading banker to the nation, is keenly aware, keeping abreast of the changes and is desirous of 'leapfrogging' by adopting the technology innovations disrupting the banking industry," NRK Raman, director at Trimax IT Infrastructure &amp; Services and an iSPIRT adviser, told the financial daily. 
 
Through this partnership, SBI will get an understanding of broad changes in technology landscape and the specific catalysts in India impacting financial services. 
 
Another person directly familiar with SBI's involvement with startups told ET that SBI was attempting to create an ecosystem around its services that would compare with other more technology-savvy banks and financial services firms, and create a platform that would give users the maximum number of options for different solutions being provided by the startups - like Android's "app store" where users have access to a plethora of apps. 
 
(Image: Indiatimes)

SBI is threatened by new-age payments banks, flies to Bengaluru to catch up with tech-savvy rivals

<div class="image-container float_right" style="width:304px"><div class="image"></div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Jerrold_Nadler,_Official_Portrait,_c112th_Congress.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a></div>The idea of circumventing the <keyword id="648838" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="debt-ceiling">debt ceiling</keyword> via the creation of a Trillion Dollar Coin first gained momentum a couple of weeks ago after it was suggested by New York Congressman <keyword id="338250" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Jerry-Nadler">Jerry Nadler</keyword> in an interview with <a href="http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2013/01/7052758/looking-next-debt-ceiling-fight-nadler-proposes-trillion-dollar-coi">Reid Pillifant of Capital New York</a>.
That such an outside-the-box, yet economically sound argument came from Nadler wasn't a big surprise, as Nadler (who represents much of Lower Manhattan) has a history of showing depth in his thinking beyond that of the typical Congressman.
Watching Washington deal with the debt ceiling can be a scary proposition, given the seriousness of the issue, combined with the ignorance, but there are some who get it.
In light of the death of the Trillion Dollar Coin, we caught back up with Nadler to get his take on it, and more broadly what Congress should be doing to help the economy.
On the deficit, he says what virtually no other politician will say, that it's too small: "I think the deficit is not our immediate problem, our immediate problem is unemployment and frankly, I think right now, we should be running a higher deficit, temporarily, to get the economy into high gear."
He also characterized Europe, which has been trying austerity for two years, as a rare real-time economics experiment: "I often say in my speeches, I say, it’s rare in life that you get a controlled scientific experiment. 'Cause you can’t do controlled scientific experiments with real people, normally. But you have it, and if you grasp the economics of the economic recoveries from 2007 in Europe and the United States, they matched, until 2010, when they start to collapse. And then it diverges, and we keep going up, slowly."
Given the unpopularity of more deficit spending, can the public ever be convinced we need to spend more? Here Nadler blames Obama for ceding too much ground and accepting the GOP premise that spending cuts are needed... "Because when the presidents sets the basic terms of the argument, that defines sort of the outer limit to a lot of extent."
As for the debt ceiling, he's very concerned, and he says the best hope is that Wall Street and big business will simply bring enough pressure on the GOP to wake them up.
Big thanks to BI intern Lisa Mahapatra for transcribing the below Q&amp;A.
-----------------------------
BI: What do you think of the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/treasury-rules-out-trillion-dollar-platinum-coin-2013-1">coin rejection</a>?
Rep. Nadler: I don’t understand why the president unilaterally disarmed even if he doesn’t want to use it, why not just keep it in his back pocket, follow what Carney said last week... and let them think, you know, that the threat is there.
BI: Right.
Rep. Nadler: He says he’s not going to negotiate, and god knows that I hope he won't, but when it comes to the deadline and they haven’t raised the debt ceiling, what happens then?...I hope he doesn’t negotiate at that point.
BI: So you think he’ll basically have to negotiate, having taken all these off the table.
Rep. Nadler: I don’t know. Because Wall St. and big businesses are going to push very hard on the Republican party not to go into Terra incognita, which terrifies them, and it should terrify them. And the Republicans may cave to that. They may not. I hope they do, and I hope they never get to that point. If we get to that point, it would be very good if we had that, if he had that in his backpocket.
BI: Let’s just take a step back for a minute, forgetting the current debt ceiling negotiations, and what’s your general view, I mean I know like, it seems to me that you have a higher understanding of economics than many congressmen, even the fact that you understood the coin proposal and understood that it wasn’t a joke. What do you think the government’s responsibility right now is, in terms of running deficits instead of stimulating the economy.
Rep. Nadler: I think the deficit is not our immediate problem, our immediate problem is unemployment and frankly, I think right now, we should be running a higher deficit, temporarily, to get the economy into high gear.
We’re in a very slow recovery, unnecessarily so. The deficit has come down from 10.1% percentage in 2009, to 7.1% now, without doing anything. I mean if we could have unemployment down to 5%, which it was in 2005, that would reduce the deficit by 40% by itself. I think this austerity policy of chasing this whole grand bargain thing, I don’t agree with. I don’t think we should be cutting spending at all, except the spending that is really unnecessary, like the military.
And even then, cut that, but increase resourceful (resources) spending. The real reason we have this high deficit we do is because of the counter-Cyclicals, unemployment insurance, food stamps, which is what we’re supposed to do.
I think trying to reduce the deficit right now is wrong, because this position is going to keep the economy in the doldrums and keep the depression going longer and it’s self-defeating.
You look at Europe. I often say in my speeches, I say, it’s rare in life that you get a controlled scientific experiment. Cause you can’t do controlled scientific experiments with real people, normally. But you have it, and if you grasp the economics of the economic recoveries from 2007 in Europe and the United States, they matched, until 2010, when they start to collapse. And then it diverges, and we keep going up, slowly.
BI: Do you think the public could be made to understand this argument. It’s very, economists understand this very well, and the idea that we should be running higher deficits to counteract the slump, but is this a message that can get through?
Rep. Nadler: I think the problem is, it’s practically impossible to get the public to buy that, as long as the president doesn’t. If the president buying into the notion that the deficit is a big problem or that we’re going to have a grand bargain.. Do we revenues as well as cuts, but still do cuts. Very difficult to do against that from the left.
BI: Do you think that the left cedes too much, is that what you’re saying, it cedes too many of the premises of the right about the benefits of cutting spending?
Rep. Nadler: I don’t know, I said from the left meaning... I think the president seems to have ceded the basic argument. And that’s a problem for all of us. Because when the presidents sets the basic terms of the argument, that defines sort of the outer limit to a lot of extent.
BI: Where does your understanding of economics come from, most congressmen don’t grasp the stuff and don’t seem to think about it like this. Why do you understand it so well?
Rep. Nadler: I read a lot, I don’t know.
BI: Who do you like to read?
Rep. Nadler: Who do I like to read? I certainly like to read Paul Krugman, his columns, his blogs. I read, you know various books: currently I’m reading a book, the Donald Bartlett book, The Betrayal American Dream. I’ve read most of Bob Kutner's books.
BI: Are there other people in the congress that sympathize with you? You just don’t hear many politicians talk like this.
Rep. Nadler: There are people who agree. Quite a few people in the progressive caucus that if you look at the progressive caucus budgets, that we vote on every year that we get generally 90 to 100 votes, those budgets either as an alternative democratic budget, we vote the democratic budget and the progressive caucus budget, and subsequent resolutions, those budgets are based on the premises that I’ve been articulating. Based on the fact that we should not be trudging along austerity, that we should be priming the pump and doing straight Keynesian economics.
BI: Do you believe that the US could theoretically have a debt crisis or do you think premise, just the idea that that could happen in the US is incorrect?
Rep. Nadler: I don’t know about could, I assume you could conjure up far-fetched circumstances in which it could occur, but it’s certainly not a likely scenario in the relatively near future. I mean right now, we’re selling our bonds at negative interest rates. I don’t see that.
BI: Now that the coin idea has been taken off the table, you know there’s still some people that think there might be some other loopholes, like the IOU idea. Do you think the White House has any backup options at this point?
Rep. Nadler: I don’t know, I don’t understand. I read something about the IOU thing, I don’t really understand it, I don’t know. They’ve taken the 14th amendment off the table, they’ve taken the trillion dollar coin off the table. The coin, I mean the 14th amendment, I’ve read good constitutional arguments on both sides, and there’s not decent court precedent. But the coin is so clearly legal, so clearly does the job, I don’t understand why they took it off the table, I don’t understand where they are at this point. As I said, I don’t know what actions there are at this point, other than they should have Wall St., big business gets the Republicans backing down.
I should tell you, I am sponsoring a bill, introduced last September, in the last congress, I’m going to reintroduce it this week, on Wednesday, just to repeal the debt ceiling. Because it’s obviously now become a tool of extortion. But we should have done that a long time ago.'
BI: Do you believe that, when the Republicans say that hitting the debt ceiling doesn’t necessarily imply default on interest payments specifically, what do you make of that argument? Do you think prioritization is technically possible?
Rep. Nadler: I don’t know, I’m not an economic expert in the operations of the government to be able to answer that. I do know, I think I read that there were 100 million checks written, I don’t know, that it’s mostly computerized, that even if you wanted it, tried to prioritize it, it’s not going to clear if in fact you physically could. And that may be the case but even so, to say that you’re going to prioritize, to say that you’re not in default if you’re paying the interest on the bonds, but you’re not sending out social security checks, not paying the military, you’re not sending veteran’s benefits, those are defaults on contractual obligations. And legal obligations. I don’t think, the market would look very differently, if you paid the bonds’ interests and you can get away with that for a while, by not paying all the other people, government collapsed and people starved, because they’re not getting social security checks, I suspect that the markets would not brightly on that.
BI: You think the best hope is that big business and Wall Street puts pressure on the Republicans, do you see evidence of that happening in a way you didn’t see in 2011.
Rep. Nadler: Oh yeah, I think we do see evidence that. I don’t think in 2011 anyone took seriously how limiting these people were. I know that now, and i think that they’re beginning to really try to put on the pressure. Whether they, certainly work on people like Boehner, it won’t work on some of these people we’ve seen talk about prioritizing and default and so forth … how that will work out I don’t know.
BI: Thank you.
-----------------------------------------
SEE ALSO: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/treasury-rules-out-trillion-dollar-platinum-coin-2013-1">White House rules out trillion dollar coin option &gt;</a>

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