New Delhi: HDFC Bank Ltd, India’s second-largest private sector lender by assets, retained its top position in a list of India’s 50 most valuable brands released on Wednesday. The bank has a brand value of $12.6 billion, according to the second edition of the BrandZ rankings.

Axis Bank Ltd, Canara Bank Ltd, tyre maker MRF Ltd and bike maker Royal Enfield are the four brands that figure for the first time in the rankings, compiled by research agency Millward Brown and commissioned by WPP Plc., the world’s largest communications services group.

HDFC Bank Ltd has rolled out its educational film 'Dhanchayat' in Odisha.

'Dhanchayat' aims to raise awareness about the dangers of borrowing money from the unorganised sector, particularly in rural areas. This film has been launched under the aegis of 'Swachh Banking', the Bank's latest CSR (corporate social responsibility) initiative.

Bear hug dragged down domestic equity markets for the fourth consecutive week and to their lowest levels in over a year on weak global cues coupled with China slowdown fear and continuous selling pressure by foreign institutional investors. Key benchmark indices plunged over 4 per cent during August 28 and September 4.

The BSE Sensex lost 1,190.48 points at 25,201.90 for the week ended September 4. NSE Nifty also dipped by 346.90 point at 7,655.05 during the same period.

Private sector lender HDFC Bank is planning to add 100 branches in the eastern region, taking its total tally to 600 branches by the end of ongoing financial year.

Currently, we have about 500 bank branches across the east and by this year we will touch 600, HDFC Bank Branch Banking Head Atul Barve said here today on the sidelines of the launch of film titled Dhanchayat.

Markets slipped to day's lows in noon trades on Wednesday, amid profit taking in bank shares after weak economic data raised concerns over credit growth.

At 1:40PM, the 30-share Sensex was down 123 points at 25,574 and the 50-share Nifty was down 38 points at 7,745.

In a move that caught its competitors off guard, HDFC Bank, India’s second-largest private lender, has reduced its base rate, the benchmark to which all other lending rates are linked, by a steep 35 basis points to 9.35 per cent. The new rate, effective Tuesday, is much lower than those of its competitors.

ICICI Bank and State Bank of India (SBI) have a base rate of 9.7 per cent.

HDFC Chairman Deepak Parekh on Friday cautioned against undercutting interest rates in order to gain market share, saying it's a dangerous proposition in the financial services sector.

If you want to take market share and undercut interest rate, it’s so sensitive that it can clean up the market. We cannot afford to be irrational and market share is not a gain in the financial services sector. It’s too dangerous, he said while launching the book ‘Your strategy needs a strategy’ authored by BCG Senior Partners Martin Reeves, Knut Haanaes and Janmejaya Sinha.

Even as its peers make a beeline to open shop at the GIFT City, the country's second-largest lender HDFC Bank has said it is not keen to have a presence in the country's first international finance centre in Ahmedabad.

The Aditya Puri-led bank feels its presence in global IFCs like Dubai, Bahrain and Hong Kong is enough to take care of its overseas business.

KOLKATA | MUMBAI: IDFC Bank, which plans to begin business on October 1, has hired senior HDFC Bank executives to hammer out its retail strategy. Biju Pillai, Amit Kumar and Birendra Sahu — heads of HDFC Bank's different business verticals at the time of leaving the bank — will now spearhead IDFC's retail assets and card business, branch banking and overall retail operations, respectively, three people familiar with the development said.

IDFC did not have any retail footprint in its pre-banking avatar as it was engaged only in corporate lending. The infrastructure lending institution, where Housing Development Finance Corporation's chairman Deepak Parekh was a founder chairman, will soon compete with HDFC Bank and ICICI for the retail business pie.

NEW DELHI: The S&P BSE Sensex plunged over 450 points in trade on Friday, tracking weak trends across global markets.

The 50-share Nifty index slipped below its crucial psychological level of 8250.

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