Banks begin to accept GST input claims to grant working capital

More than 90 days after the roll-out of the goods and services tax (GST), lenders are gravitating to sanctioning working capital loans, especially to micro and small units, against documents used in the new tax regime.

They are no longer looking at just sales of the units concerned to decide on loan sanctions.

Banks are looking at input credit in deciding how much working capital loans they should advance.

The country’s largest lender, State Bank of India, and Union Bank of India, also a public sector bank, have started giving loans, especially to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) after assessing their input tax credit claims.

A public sector bank executive said the large number of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) had been included under the ambit of formal trade with the introduction of the GST.

SMEs are facing a working capital crunch because in the absence of proper financial returns, they are unable to access bank credit.

In the traditional route, banks make working capital assessments based on sales, as indicated in the balance sheet.

Besides this, entrepreneurs are facing a credit crunch because in the GST regime SMEs are entitled to input tax credit, and it is stretching their operating cycle.

A Punjab National Bank (PNB) official said the banking system is shifting to looking at the history of transactions such as GST credit-based decisions about credit, especially for SMEs.

SBI Chief General Manager (SME) V Ramling said using GST claims by banks would give SMEs the time to manage their working capital requirements till the time they got input tax credit. It will also help stabilise SMEs to run their operations without any hurdles.

SBI said the loan would be sanctioned outside Assessed Bank Finance (ABF) at 20 per cent of the existing fund-based working capital limit or 80 per cent of input tax claim due on purchases, whichever is lower.

Units and companies seeking a loan under the product need to give a certificate from their chartered accountant, confirming the input credit claims.

 

Source: Business Standard

FinMin revises criteria for recapitalisation of PSBs

State-owned banks looking forward to the next round of capital infusion will need to fulfill a new set of criteria, including credit recovery, as the finance ministry has revised the recapitalisation norms.

The second tranche of capital allocation for the current fiscal would be based on cost of operations as well as recovery and quality of credit on the basis of risk weighted assets, sources said.

Only those lenders that fulfil the criteria post third quarter (October-December) results of the current fiscal will be eligible for the second round of funding, sources added.

The money was allocated last fiscal on the twin principles of ensuring 7.5 per cent common equity tier 1 (CET 1) at the end of the 2016 and growth capital to five major banks.

The government in July had announced the first round of capital infusion of Rs 22,915 crore for 13 banks.

“75 per cent of the amount (Rs 22,915 crore)…Is being released now to provide liquidity support for lending operations as also to enable banks to raise funds from the market,” the finance ministry had said in a statement.

“The remaining amount, to be released later, will be linked to performance with particular reference to greater efficiency, growth of both credit and deposits and reduction in the cost of operations,” it had said.

The first tranche was announced with the objective to enhance their lending operations and enable them to raise more money from the market.

Out of the Rs 22,915 crore, State Bank of India (SBI) was provided Rs 7,575 crore followed by Indian Overseas Bank (Rs 3,101 crore) and Punjab National Bank (Rs 2,816 crore).

The other lenders, which have got commitment of capital infusion are Bank of India (Rs 1,784 crore), Central Bank of India (Rs 1,729 crore), Syndicate Bank (Rs 1,034 crore), UCO Bank (Rs 1,033 crore), Canara Bank (Rs 997 crore), United Bank of India (Rs 810 crore), Union Bank of India (Rs 721 crore), Corporation Bank (Rs 677 crore), Dena Bank (Rs 594 crore) and Allahabad Bank (Rs 44 crore).

The capital infusion exercise for the current fiscal is based on an assessment of need as per the compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of credit growth for the last five years, banks’ own projections of credit growth and estimates of the potential for growth of each PSB, it had said.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley in his budget speech for 2016-17 had proposed to allocate Rs 25,000 crore towards recapitalisation of PSU banks. “If additional capital is required by these banks, we will find the resources for doing so. We stand solidly behind these Banks,” he had said.

 

Source: http://www.mydigitalfc.com/economy/finmin-revises-criteria-recapitalisation-psbs-539