CHENNAI: Public sector lender Indian Bank is aiming to raise $2 billion through foreign currency non-resident (bank) (FCNR(B)) deposits. The move comes in the wake of the RBI withdrawing the interest rate ceiling on fresh FCNR(B) deposits with maturities of three to five years until Sept 30, 2026. The bank has seen a spurt in FCNR(B) deposits over the past 25 days following the RBI’s move.“So far, we have secured $140 million between June 15 and July 9. We plan to raise around $2 billion by Sept this year. We already have a pipeline of $1 billion,” Indian Bank MD & CEO Binod Kumar said here on Friday. The inflow target is more than four times the bank’s FCNR(B) deposit mobilisation in FY26, when it raised $457 million.The bank has revised the interest rate on FCNR(B) deposits to 6% from 5.5%. Noting that the proposed $2 billion mobilisation through FCNR(B) deposits would be among the highest for the bank under the scheme, he said the annualised return would be around 13%-14%. Meanwhile, Indian Bank posted a 10% rise in net profit to Rs 3,273 crore in Q1 from Rs 2,973 crore in the year-ago period, driven by an increase in yield on advances and strong growth in net interest income, among others.
