All articles by Duygu Tavan
Duygu Tavan
EON Bank Malaysia to expand despite Hong Leong-EON Capital merger
Malaysia-based EON Bank’s chief executive has said that the bank is not deterred or hindered by the expected takeover by Hong Leong Bank Datuk Michael Lor told regional media that EON Bank would continue to expand in Malaysia and said that the bank would open more branches and pursue investments in 2011. EON Bank is tied up in a merger proposal between its parent company, EON Capital, and Hong Leong Bank.
Two more Turkish banks target expansion in Iraq
Albaraka Turk and Bank Asya, have become the latest Turkey-based banks to expand into Iraq Albaraka Turk and Bank Asya are both looking to open branches in Arbil, a city in the North of Iraq. Both banks have been granted permission by the Turkish banking regulation and supervision agency, BDDK, and now await approval from the Iraqi regulatory authorities.
Visa, Yapi Kredi, Turkcell roll out mobile contactless payments for iPhone
Turkey-based Yapi Kredi has partnered with Visa Europe and Turkcell, the country’s biggest telecommunications provider, to introduce iCarte, a contactless mobile payment service for Turkcells iPhone customers. The launch of the iCarte comes less than two months after rival Garanti rolled out an antenna-equipped SIM card mobile payment service that integrates wireless near field communication (NFC) in co-operation with MasterCard and Turkish mobile phone operator Avea.
Bankarnas Automatbolag agrees outsourcing deal with EDB
Norwegian IT firm EDB ErgoGroup is to take control over the ATMs operated by Bankarnas Automatbolag in Sweden, a company that was set up by Nordic banks Danske Bank, Handelsbanken, Nordea, SEB and Swedbank The outsourcing deal will involve EDB ErgoGroup looking after 2,800 ATMs in Sweden, with responsibility for services including maintenenance and deposits for the next seven years. The executive vice president and head of financial services business area at EDB Ergogroup,Wiljar Nesse, said that the deal with Bankarnas Automatbolag was of strategic importance as the vendor targets a leading position in the Nordic IT vendor market.
Lloyds launches online Money Manager
UK-based Lloyds TSB bank has launched a new personal finance management (PFM) tool, Money Manager, for its online banking customers. The launch of Money Manager comes less than two weeks after Money Dashboard launched the first UK-based PFM tool on 19 January. The Money Manager enables customers to categorise their expenses – such as household expenses, clothes, entertainment and restaurant visits and view their spending history for the past two years.
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Sberbank FY10 profits soar, beat forecasts
Russias largest lender by assets, Sberbank, has beaten its own forecasts for fiscal 2010 with an increase in net profits to RUB183.6bn ($6.2bn), compared to RUB21.7bn in the prior year. Retail deposits increased by 27.4% to RUB4.8tr from a year ago; retail loans rose 11.3% to RUB1.3tr year on year.
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group 9M10 profits soar 107%
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Groups (SMFG),Japan’s second largest bank by market value, has posted net income of Y515.1bn ($6.3bn) for the nine months to December, a 107.9% increase from the corresponding period a year ago.
HSBC continues Asia expansion in Vietnam
The bank said that one of the branches, based in the city of Dong Nai, was the first branch in the city to be operated completely by a foreign lender.
Korean banks Woori, Shinhan, Hana bid for troubled Samwha
Three South Korean banks are eyeing up troubled Samwha Mutual Savings Bank (Samwha), who was suspended from operating because it did not meet regulatory capital requirement levels. Woori Financial Group, Hana Financial Group and Shinhan Bank have all reportedly submitted their letters of intention to bid for Samwha, according to the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC). The KDIC suspended Samwha Mutual Savings Banks operations for six monthson 14 January, after the bank failed to meet regulatory capital requirement levels.
VTB seeks greater market share in Ukraine
Russias second largest bank by assets, VTB, has announced plans to expand its business in the Ukraine and grow its regional market share. The bank said that growing its business and network in the Ukraine was a key priority in the banks business strategy. The bank added that it is targeting a growth in market share both in the retail and investment banking sector in the Ukraine and wants to achieve a significant growth within the next two year, the head of VTB’s Ukraine operations, Andrei Kostin, told regional media.