Oriental Bank of Commerce Bhagwan Das Narang loves watching action flicks every night. "Action films are great stress-busters, as you don't have to think while watching them," Narang says.
The chairman and managing director of the Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) is, however, witnessing action of a different kind these days. As a result, golf, his other passion, has also taken a back seat.
Narang is not compalining though, as the Global Trust Bank deal was a dream come true. Ever since taking over as OBC chief in July 2000, he wanted the North-based bank to increase its footprint in the South. With the deal in place now, OBC's presence is expected to double in the southern states. The bank currently has 49 branches, including extension counters, in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The number is is expected to touch 100 now.
His other mission -- to make the bank's accounts transparent -- was fulfilled last year when OBC's accounts for 2002-03 was prepared as per United States' Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (USGAAP). Narang is also immensely proud of the fact that the Delhi-headquartered bank has got zero non-performing assets -- a first in India.
Also, OBC has one of the strongest balance sheets among public sector banks with a capital adequacy of 16 per cent and the lowest cost-to-assets ratio.
For the 59-year-old banker, who started as a probationary officer in Union Bank of India and rose to become a general manager, it has been quite a leap from being just another low-profile banker to one of the most visible faces in the industry.
His colleagues say that his forte lies in strategising and it is very rare that he would himself go seeking business. "The implementation is left to the subordinates and this has ensured that a second rung of leaders is created in the bank," says a senior OBC executive.
Narang, however, is known for his plain-speaking. At a time when no bank chairman was willing to stick his neck out on the interest rate movement, it was Narang who first set the cat among the pigeons by saying that there was a bubble building in the mortgage finance market, and higher interest rates would help release some hot air out of this bubble.
Some bankers, however, accuse him of being "a bit too over cautious". In one instance, Narang refused a loan to the Tatas for the TCS initial public offer to facilitate the transfer of the division to Orchid, a Tata Sons subsidiary (Orchid was later renamed TCS). OBC executives said Narang found the deal a bit too confusing to handle and decided to opt out.
Lending to hydro-electric projects and tourism is something he would like to do more. "If you have to pep up growth, you need to increase lending to these areas and the government has to accord them top priority," he says.
So far Narang has operated mostly from the background. In fact, he keeps changing his cell numbers every alternate month to ensure minimum intrusion into his privacy. All that is bound to change now.
