Stanchart , OBC tie up for agency services

Standard Chartered Bank (Stanchart) has tied up with Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) for providing agency trade services to importers in the country.

The arrangement will allow 12 OBC branches to issue letters of credit for imports to traders for east Asian countries against which Stanchart will re-issue local letters of credit.

"We will get more commission from such transactions," KN Prithviraj, chairman, OBC, said here after signing the agency trade services agreement with Stanchart.

"The tie-up with OBC is ninth such deal as we focus on serving more Indian customers," Jaspal Bindra, general manager for South Asia, Stanchart, said. OBC and Stanchart will partner in negotiation and other trade-related services for these letters of credit.

The two banks aim at improving services to the importers and mutually grow trade business through agency trade services.

Stanchart had earlier tied up with Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Punjab National Bank and Corporation Bank among others. Stanchart has 80 branches in 30 cities across the country.