Last month, a poll by ratings agency Moody's found that 70% of investors in Hong Kong see India's banking system as the most vulnerable in south and southeast Asia. "I wonder what the remaining 30% were smoking," says Andy Mukherjee on Bloomberg Gadfly.
The state of Indian lenders "depleted capital levels in state-run banks and an inability to shed soured corporate debt even in non-state-controlled ones" is revealed in their latest earnings. Bad debts now total $191bn and counting.
It's not all bad HDFC has built a "formidable retail franchise", for example, and is poaching the best corporate clients from struggling state-run lenders. Yet at least when state banks struggle, the government fires their CEOs, says Una Galani on Breakingviews.com.
MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Private-sector banks Axis and ICICI "ran into trouble lending to sectors such as power and infrastructure, where companies overestimated demand and projects overran", but neither have fired top management. In the US, heads would have rolled. "Corporate leaders in India rarely get the chop and... shareholders seldom apply sufficient pressure to force change."
-
Reeves urged to axe stamp duty from UK shares held in an ISAChancellor Rachel Reeves is reportedly considering axing stamp duty from UK shares held in stocks and shares ISAs. What could it mean for your portfolio?
-
Family investment companies explained: how the ultra wealthy shield their money from the taxmanWealthy families are increasingly turning to family investment companies to keep more of their money away from HMRC – but what are these arrangements and how do they work?
