CIMB TEAMS UP WITH INDIA’S KOTAK TO PUSH ITS REGIONAL BUSINESS AGENDA

By P. Vijian

MUMBAI, Aug 3 (Bernama) -- After bolstering its position in Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean), CIMB Group has joined hands with India's Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd to push its regional cross-border business agenda.

To strengthen its commitment in India, CIMB signed a business cooperation agreement with Kotak on Tuesday and established a representative office in Mumbai, India's financial capital.

CIMB group chief executive officer, Nazir Razak, told Bernama CIMB's focus would be to look at investment opportunities for Malaysian and Asean companies to invest in India and vice-versa.

"The biggest area of opportunity we see at the moment in India is
infrastructure (sector).

"Our partnership with Kotak is an important strategic move for CIMB Group. The DNA and associated fit between our two organisations are obvious and given the expected business flows between India and Asean, I think this partnership will prove a great success," he said.

The framework would pave way for both parties to explore opportunities arising from cross border investments and trade flows, focusing on selected countries in the India-Asean corridor.

Besides, it would also cover merger and acquisition advisory, trade finance and remittance as well.

The group has presence in eight out of 10 Asean nations (Malaysia,
Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia, Brunei, Vietnam, and Myanmar) and had recently established a representative office in China.

Uday Kotak, executive vice chairman/managing director of Kotak, said the collaboration was a significant opportunity for two financial conglomerates to leverage on their strengths to serve respective customers better in the Indo-Asean corridor across a range of financial services.

According to Reserve Bank of India, between 2007 and June 2011, about US$13.2 billion (US$1=RM2.94) of deal activities transpired between India and Asean.

Asean is emerging as a key destination for India's outward foreign direct investment, amounting to US$12 billion, or 27 per cent of overall investments of US$43.9 billion (RM131.7 billion) in 2010-11.

CIMB Mumbai office was launched by Malaysian High Commissioner to India, Tan Seng Sung.