India set for $168 bln mega bank as HDFC merger nears

India set for $168 bln mega bank as HDFC merger nears

The merger of India’s most valuable lender and the nation’s largest mortgage financier to create what could be the world’s fifth-most valuable bank is inching closer to completion, with just one key step remaining that investors are watching for closely.

Announcement of the so called ‘record date’ — or the cut-off day set for investors — for the swapping of shares of Housing Development Finance Corp. for HDFC Bank Ltd. is expected within three weeks.

For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.The merged entity is likely to trade under the HDFC Bank ticker before July 20, bringing an end to the process that began in April 2022.

The merger is unprecedented in India, creating a bank worth $168 billion and impacting over tens of millions of customers and shareholders across the two companies apart from group insur-ance and asset management businesses.

A central team, with three members from each company, and nearly three dozen committees worked on a business integration plan. Meanwhile, legal approvals were sought from shareholders, banking, securities market and competition regulators as well as stock exchanges with the final nod granted by the company law tribunal in March.

The approvals got done in good time