RBI denies any approval on LVB-IBH merger for now

MUMBAI: The Reserve Bank of India will scrutinize the merger proposal between Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB) and Indiabulls Housing Finance (IBH) following normal regulatory guidelines, the central bank said in release on Saturday.

"The proposals, as and when received from these entities, will be examined in RBI as per extant regulatory guidelines/directions," the central bank said.

The RBI sought to refute any inference that the presence of two nominee directors on the board of LVB will aid the lender to obtain approval on the merger with non-banking finance company.


"It is also clarified that presence of Additional Directors nominated by the RBI on the Board of LVB does not imply any approval of the RBI of the merger proposal," the RBI said.

The central bank has made it amply clear that the proposed merger does not have any green signal from it at the current stage.

"Moreover, the Additional Directors have clearly mentioned at the meeting that they have no view on the proposal."

The merger will help the Tamil Nadu-based LVB to attain a larger pan India presence.

The merged entity should have a net worth Rs 19,472 crore and a loan book Rs l,23,393 crore for the nine months of FY19, media report suggested.