BoB to take over Memon Co-op Bank

Bank of Baroda (BoB) has decided to take over specific assets and liabilities of troubled Memon Cooperative Bank,Mumbai. The state-owned lender which has already got the approval of the Central government and the Reserve Bank of India for the purpose will formulate a scheme for the takeover which will be subject to further approvals of the appropriate authorities.

The banking regulator had suspended the operations of loss-laden Memon Co-operative Bank in May last year for alleged mismanagement and falsification of accounts. The RBI had also lodged a complaint against the bank charging it with preparing balance sheets for 2006,2007 and 2008 showing

profits of Rs 13.34 lakh,Rs 5.95 lakh and Rs 5.77 lakh respectively. However,an inspection by RBI had revealed that the bank was actually running with losses of Rs 128 crore,Rs 161 crore and Rs 118 crore during these years.

Memon Co-operative bank has 18 branches across Maharashtra and Gujarat. The bank had deposits of Rs 293 crore and advances of Rs 195 crore as on March 31,2010.