Nordbank seeks RBI nod to start operations in India

Mumbai: HSH Nordbank AG, the world’s largest ship financier, is looking to start operations in India, a market where local shipping firms will need to spend around $20 billion (Rs82,000 crore) on ships as they replace older vessels and acquire new tankers to meet international shipping guidelines.
Nordbank, 35.38% owned by the city state of Hamburg in Germany, has applied for permission from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to start operations, said a person familiar with the development, and who did not want to be identified ahead of a clearance from the Indian central bank.
If and when RBI clears its application, the German bank will become the first specialist ship financing firm to start operations in India. Nordbank has lent more than €30 billion (Rs1.7 trillion) to global shipping firms buying container ships, tankers and bulk carriers in an effort to meet the rising demand for moving cargo in a booming global economy.
Apart from shipping, Nordbank also undertakes financing of companies in sectors such as aviation, logistics, rail, infrastructure and real estate.
04/09/07 P. Manoj/Livemint

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Categories: Foreign Sep 2007