Kotak Mahindra Bank and ING Bank Sign MoU for Cross Border Business

5 June 2015

Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. (KMBL) and ING Bank, today, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) where both institutions will cooperate and explore opportunities arising from cross border business, investment and trade flows across Benelux (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg), Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, Asia and Australia. The MoU was signed in the presence Mr. Mark Rutte, Hon’ble Prime Minister of Netherlands.

On November 20, 2014, KMBL and the erstwhile ING Vysya Bank Ltd. (IVBL) announced the scheme of merger, where both KMBL and IVBL expressed intent to explore areas of cooperation in cross-border business. Effective April 1, 2015, ING Vysya Bank Ltd. has merged with Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd creating a Rs. 2 trillion institution (consolidated). This merger has brought together two strong players in the industry to form a more robust and fundamentally sound bank, and this MoU further strengthens the complementarities.

The MoU covers an array of co-operation areas such as trade finance, remittances and services related to Non-Resident Indians, Nostro and Vostro accounts, funding to counterparties’ corporate relationships, fee-based products (including but not limited to foreign exchange, letters of credit, and guarantees), direct banking and digital strategy, and cross-border debt capital markets and M&A.

Uday Kotak, Executive Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Bank, said, “The merger of ING Vysya Bank with Kotak Mahindra Bank was driven by the growth potential emerging from our complementarities. This MoU is one such opportunity. It opens a window of opportunities, offering international exposure and enabling us to learn global best practices.”

KVS Manian, President - Corporate, Institutional & Investment Banking, Kotak Mahindra Bank, said, “The MoU will leverage the strengths of both institutions and will be mutually beneficial. We have a strong corporate, institutional and investment banking business, which can now meet varying client needs across several geographies.”

Ralph Hamers, CEO of ING said: “We welcome the cooperation between Kotak Mahindra Bank and ING Bank, as it will give clients from The Netherlands and the other 39 countries where we are active in commercial banking access to Kotak’s services in the vast Indian market while at the same time it will offer our combined clients in India the opportunities of ING’s international network. Therefore it really underscores our purpose to empower people to stay a step ahead, in life and in business.”

Mark Newman, CEO of ING Commercial Banking Asia said: “Our collaboration will allow us to stand apart and create that differentiating experience for our India clients outside India and our global clients active within India. This MoU is equally important to both ING and Kotak Mahindra because it will fuel both our ambitions for cross-border business growth.”

ING Bank N.V., a subsidiary of ING Group Holdings N.V., is a global financial institution with a strong European base. It has long-standing legacy and offers world class business services. Kotak Mahindra Bank is India’s fourth largest private bank, with strong governance and robust operational framework.

Mark Newman is also a member on the Board of Kotak Mahindra Bank.

About Kotak Mahindra Group

Established in 1985, the Kotak Mahindra Group is one of India’s leading financial services conglomerates. In February 2003, Kotak Mahindra Finance Ltd. (KMFL), the Group’s flagship company, received a banking license from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). With this, KMFL became the first non-banking finance company in India to become a bank – Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited.

Before the merger, the consolidated balance sheet of Kotak Mahindra Group is around Rs. 1.49 trillion and the consolidated net worth of the Group stands at Rs. 221.53 billion (US$ 3.5 billion) . Effective April 1, 2015, ING Vysya Bank Ltd has merged with Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd creating a Rs. 2 trillion institution (consolidated). The merged entity – Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. will have a significant national footprint of 1,250+ branches and 1,900+ ATMs spread across 640 locations, affording it the capacity and means to serve even better.

The Group offers a wide range of financial services that encompass every sphere of life. From commercial banking, to stock broking, mutual funds, life insurance and investment banking, the Group caters to the diverse financial needs of individuals and the corporate sector. The Group has a wide distribution network through branches and franchisees across India, and international offices in London, New York, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Mauritius and Singapore.

The Bank has three Strategic Business Units catering to retail and corporate customers across urban and rural India. The Consumer Banking business offers complete retail financial solutions including a variety of savings and loan products and innovative digital solutions - Jifi, a first-of-its-kind fully integrated Social Bank Account, redefines digital banking by seamlessly incorporating social networking platforms like Twitter and Facebook with mainstream banking. KayPay is the world’s first bank 2 agnostic instant funds transfer platform using Facebook. On the savings bank account front, the Bank offers interest rate at 6% p.a. for balances of over Rs. 1 lakh, and provides a comprehensive suite of investment services and transactional conveniences. The Bank’s Wealth Management business is one of India’s largest and provides customised financial solutions to high net worth families.

The Corporate Banking business offers a comprehensive portfolio of products and services – working capital financing, medium term finance, current account, trade services, cash management services, export credit, transaction banking, custody services, debt capital markets, forex and treasury services.

The Commercial Banking business offers a comprehensive portfolio of banking products and services to Small and Medium enterprises (SME) engaged in manufacturing, trading, services and export businesses. It has specialised units, which provide finance to Agri Sector, Commercial Vehicle operators and Infrastructure business. It services farmers across India by providing term loans to purchase tractors. The Bank also offers small ticket Gold loans and business loans.

For more information, please visit the company’s website at http://www.kotak.com/

About ING Bank

ING is a global financial institution with a strong European base, offering banking services through its operating company ING Bank and holding a significant stake in the listed insurer NN Group NV. The purpose of ING Bank is empowering people to stay a step ahead in life and in business. ING Bank’s 53,000 employees offer retail and commercial banking services to customers in over 40 countries.

ING Group shares are listed (in the form of depositary receipts) on the exchanges of Amsterdam (INGA NA, ING.AS), Brussels and on the New York Stock Exchange (ADRs: ING US, ING.N).

Sustainability forms an integral part of ING’s corporate strategy, which is evidenced by ING Group shares being included in the FTSE4Good index and in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (Europe and World) where ING is the industry leader in the diversified financials group.
ING Bank in Asia is part of ING covering Commercial, Retail and Direct Banking in the Asia Pacific. Globally, ING Commercial Banking has an international network in 40 countries with key positions in Structured Finance and Financial Markets.

ING Commercial Banking is present and active in 13 major economies in the Asia Pacific, namely Australia, China, Hong Kong SAR, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. ING’s presence in Asia also includes a 13.64% stake in Bank of Beijing, China; a 6.5% stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank, India; a 30.02% stake in TMB Bank, Thailand; and a 100% stake in ING Direct in Australia.