Bank Of Rajasthan Eyed By ICICI Bank?

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NEW DELHI, INDIA (GaeaTimes.com)- ICICI Bank, which is the biggest private sector bank in India in terms of market capitalization, is reportedly trying to acquire small private bank, Bank of Rajasthan. The Tayals who are the present owners of the small private sector bank are also in talks with other buyers, as the industry reports indicate. However, the Bank of Rajasthan officials have remained tight lipped on the issue and the ICICI Bank officials have also not said anything on the topic. The RBI has put the Tayal family members under pressure for the last few months and the accounts and audits of the bank of Rajasthan have been put under the scanner of the consulting firms appointed by RBI.

If the merger does happen it would result in small dilution for ICICI which has a market capitalization of INR 1,00,717 crore as against INR 1,323 crore of the Bank of Rajasthan. Of late ICICI Bank has focused on growing its operations and presence in western and southern parts of the country. It earlier acquired two banks, namely Sangli Bank and Bank of Madura. If it takes over the Bank of Rajasthan its presence in the North West region of India will be boosted significantly.

If ICICI Bank merges with the Bank of Rajasthan it will help the former in zooming past its rival HDFC bank in terms of branch strength in India. The BoR has 466 branches in the country and most of these branches are located in Rajasthan. Reportedly, HDFGC Bank was also approached by the Tayals but its management did not show much interest.