ICICI Bank 2016 Annual Report Download - page 84

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Business Overview
Annual Report 2015-2016
been announced. The Bank pursued lending opportunities in the roads and ports sectors and to a limited extent in the
power sector, particularly transmission and distribution.
In roads, execution under the National Highway Development Program (NHDP) has picked up speed in scal 2016. The
government has set an aggressive target of building 30 km/day of highways and has awarded several road projects
during the year. To mitigate the limitations of Build Operate Transfer (BOT) projects, the Government has introduced the
Hybrid Annuity Model which allows for greater risk sharing between the public and private sector. To provide a further
llip to private participation, a few other key reforms were announced. These include allowing the private sector to exit
projects after two years of completion of construction, introduction of a one-time fund infusion for stalled road projects
and extension of concession period or upfront compensatory annuities for delays not attributable to the concessionaire,
amongst others. The sector is poised for growth on the back of renewed Government focus and an improving macro-
economic sentiment.
Railways, which was predominantly government-owned, has been opened up for private investments and is focusing
on improving passenger amenities. The public-private partnership mode has been envisaged for investments via re-
development of various identied railway stations and unlocking of associated commercial real estate. This is expected
to open up opportunities for greater private sector participation.
The infrastructure and core sector developments are critical to India’s growth and the Bank’s sectoral expertise ensures
tapping opportunities to invest judiciously and for the long-term.
International Banking
ICICI Bank’s strategy for international banking continues to be focused on three pillars which include providing end-to-
end solutions for the international banking requirements of its Indian corporate clients; leveraging economic corridors
between India and the rest of the world; and establishing ICICI Bank as the preferred bank for Non-Resident Indians
(NRIs) in key global markets. The International Banking Group has positioned itself as the preferred partner for global
corporations seeking to expand their presence in India. The Bank also strives to build stable and diversied international
funding sources and strong syndication capabilities to support its corporate and investment banking businesses.
The Bank continued to sharpen its focus in scal 2016 on managing risks in its international operations due to the volatile
global business environment. It also focused on diversifying the funding prole of its international operations, expanding
its trade nance business and building relationships with global corporates doing business in India. ICICI Bank was
named India’s Best Borrower in FinanceAsia’s 2015 Fixed Income Research Poll. The Bank continued to rationalise the
capital invested in its overseas operations. During scal 2016, ICICI Bank Canada repatriated equity and preference share
capital aggregating CAD 87.1 million. ICICI Bank’s foreign branches also repatriated a portion of their retained earnings,
resulting in exchange rate gains of ` 9.41 billion.
India continues to be the highest recipient globally of inward remittances. ICICI Bank continues to be a leader in the
remittance market by offering innovative and customer friendly products and customised service offerings that meet
the requirements of the widely dispersed NRI population. In scal 2016, the Bank’s key platform for inward remittances,
Money2India was launched on Facebook. The mobile app for the same was enhanced to provide full-service capability
and the online service was extended to United Arab Emirates.
The Bank’s international footprint consists of subsidiaries in the United Kingdom and Canada, branches in the United
States, Singapore, Bahrain, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Dubai International Finance Centre, Qatar Financial Centre, China and
South Africa; and representative ofces in the United Arab Emirates, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia. The Bank’s
wholly-owned subsidiary, (ICICI Bank UK Plc), has eight branches in the United Kingdom and a branch each in Belgium
and Germany. ICICI Bank Canada also has eight branches. During scal 2016, the Bank opened its rst branch in China and
in South Africa. ICICI Bank also set up its International Banking Unit (IBU), in India’s rst International Financial Services
Centre (IFSC), at GIFT City, Gandhinagar in Gujarat. The Bank envisages the IBU to be at the core of its international
strategy aimed at offering trade, treasury and credit solutions to its corporate customers.