IDFC, the parent company of IDFC Bank, said it is in discussions with regulators on a possible merger of the two entities. Such a merger is being thought of in the wake of the new guidelines issued by the Reserve Bank of India on on-tap banking licenses, which do not make it mandatory for banks to have a holding company. According to news reports, Rajiv Lall, MD and CEO of IDFC Bank, has been quoted as saying the new guidelines provided for setting up of a bank by a promoter entity without a holding company. This proviso, he says, will help IDFC group in simplifying the structure. IDFC later issued a statement clarifying that neither the bank nor IDFC have as yet approved any final proposal for merger or reverse merger or written to RBI or other regulator in this regard.
