Tag: India

Barclays launches mobile banking service in India

Posted by | Mar 5, 2008 | |

UK bank Barclays has launched a mobile banking service in India that enables customers to transfer funds, pay bills and make account enquiries using their handsets.

The new m-banking service – called Hello Money – will cost customers Rs30 a month.

Customers signed up to the service dial a number before entering a PIN and choosing the option they want from a Hindi or English menu.

Hello Money is available through all GSM handsets on the Airtel, Vodafone and Idea networks in 40 Indian cities. The bank is looking to extend the service to CDMA handsets in the future.

Barclays says the system – which is based on ‘unstructured supplementary service data’ (USSD) technology – is easier to use than SMS and GPRS mobile banking services, which often involve several steps such as application downloads and can be costly as customers are charged for SMS or GPRS subscription every time they use the service.

The bank says its new m-bankig system can bring financial services to India’s 184 million unbanked population.

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India Post plans global tie-ups to take on MNCs

Posted by | Feb 29, 2008 | |

India Post is all set to enter into a series of global partnerships to compete with international money services companies such as Western Union and global courier companies like FedEx. The postal department is in talks with its counterparts in the US, Switzerland, France, and Oman, among others, as it plans to tap the expertise of these countries in specialised financial services and replicate such offerings in India.

The logic: With nearly 82,000 post offices being computerised, the strong IT base will enable India Post to offer several value-added services in addition to full-fledged banking services. Partnerships with global majors will enable India Post to launch these value-added and modern ICT-based services.

Besides, with millions of expatriate workers of Indian origin in several countries sending huge remittances back home, the postal department is also going all out to tap this segment. More so, considering that India Post has the largest possible network of 70,000 branches in rural India alone.

For instance, India Post has already tied up with the postal service department of the UAE for speedy transfer of money orders between the two countries. While this facility is currently available only to a few sourthern states, it will soon be extended to all states in a phased manner.

The process to get into global partnerships was set rolling last year. In November 2007, India Post signed an MoU with Deutsche Post where both organisations agreed to create a multi-layer relationship. The MoU envisaged partnerships in the field of conveyance and distribution of mails, logistic and warehousing operations and financial services.

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Gati Ltd. is new GLS partner in India

Posted by | Feb 27, 2008 | |

On April 1st, parcel exchange between GLS and Gati Limited will begin. The two companies signed a partner agreement on 25 February 2008

With its full-area coverage distribution network, only Gati Ltd. delivers to 594 out of 604 districts in India. The company has over 3,500 employees and operates with 2,000 business associates to provide these services. Freight and parcel shipments are as much a part of the portfolio as are warehousing and supply chain management solutions. In addition to road and rail-based transports, Gati operates closely with Air India to realise national air express deliveries. Ship transports are also available for freight and container transports in the Asia Pacific region. The company is listed on the Indian National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Parcels from India are distributed by GLS through the airfreight office in Frankfurt as well as the central hub in Neuenstein, Germany, to the hubs of its subsidiaries and partners in Europe. In India, shipments from the GLS system first arrive at the central distribution center in Delhi. From there, Gati sends them to their respective destination via 19 express distribution centers. This all serves to bring the seventh largest country in the world, covering an area of 3.2 million square kilometres, with its 1.1 billion inhabitants, a lot closer to European parcel consignors.

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Overnite Express takes the bus to southern India

Posted by | Feb 25, 2008 | |

Indian courier company Overnite Express has linked up with a large bus company, the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC), to extend its reach in the fast-growing southern Indian market.

Under the strategic agreement, Delhi-based Overnite Express will be utilizing dedicated space in long-distance Garuda Buses operated by APSRTC to transport goods, parcels and couriers. The new service covers the four states of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

This service will benefit a diverse range of industries and enable them to move their products between destinations in a faster time, said O. P. Rajgarhia, Chairman and Managing Director, Overnite Express.

The launch of this new service will help Overnite reach most of the prominent destinations in the state of Andhra Pradesh, he added. Already a strong player in the north and eastern regions of the country, the company is now concentrating on South India, and is in the process of opening over 100 branches and express collection centers all over the state.

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Geojit Financial Services is bullish on Blue Dart, Abbott India

Posted by | Feb 25, 2008 | |

Blue Dart is an 81pct subsidiary of the DHL Group, Shah said. “The company has posted excellent December quarter results. It plans to compliment and widen service offerings. It has launched a new surface express product in CY07 called Dart Surfline, which is expected to grow 40-45pct per annum.”

Abbott India is a 65pct subsidiary of Abbott Inc USA, he said. “The company’s numbers are in line with expectation. It provides healthcare services through business units. The parent company Abbott Inc is a leading player globally and is focused on pharma.”
Q: What makes you so bullish on Blue Dart? Is it the sector as a whole or the fact that they had a stellar set of December numbers?

A: It is basically the sector considering the kind of growth potential. If you consider the number of MNC plans that are coming into India, logistics business is supposed to grow going forward from hereon. Considering the capex cycle that corporate India has, the entire sector in logistics looks quite good, whether it is Blue Dart or certain other reasonably low-end players.

Blue Dart is a 81pct subsidiary of DHL and is one of South Asia’s most integrated courier and logistics company. It also has the benefit of covering 220 countries, considering it is an 81pct subsidiary of DHL. Also, the distribution service spectrum is about to witness a fair amount of growth from hereon.

Blue Dart has been in the domestic market for a very long time and also has the expertise to deliver. Considering that companies like Tesco, Wal*Mart and Carrefour are opening their retail outlets in India, the services provided by Blue Dart would definitely tend to grow, keeping in mind the kind of retail boom we are seeing.

We have a price target of Rs 750 on Blue Dart over a one-year timeframe. Possibly, if you have a stretched out timeframe, it can even get better from hereon.

Abbott India is a 65pct subsidiary of Abbott Inc. USA. Abbott India provides healthcare solutions to its three segments – primary care, specialty care and hospitality care. The parent company Abbott Inc has got good number of products in its pipeline and is well poised to take advantage of the patent when it unfolds in India.

Considering the kind of growth that the healthcare business can possibly see in India, I think the topline and bottomline would definitely benefit. Abbott could possibly well be poised to leverage the parent company’s product line-up. We have a price target of about Rs 630 with a one-year timeframe.

Q: The volumes on both these stocks are dismally low. How would you explain the kind of price rise or interest in the counters on such low volumes?

A: With Abbott especially, it has traded only on BSE. In case you are a one-year plus kind of an investor, then these kinds of volumes should not make much of a difference, because you are not taking a trading call over here. The volumes are definitely low on both Abbott as well as Blue Dart. But if you have a delivery perspective and a one-year timeframe, then these kinds of low volumes should not deter you from making an investment.

Of course, the sectors that both these companies are placed in, tends to grow from hereon, on the domestic consumption growth story. So, considering these two points, volumes should not deter you from making an investment call on these two companies.

Q: Any disclosures?

A: No personal holdings. But since our company has got a buy report on both, our clients might be holding their positions in the two companies

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