Uday Kotak clarifies his statement, calling dollar as "financial terrorist"

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], April 30 : Kotak Mahindra Bank Chief Executive Officer Uday Kotak on Sunday clarified his statement which mentioned the dollar as the "biggest financial terrorist in the world". He reiterated that he had referred to the greenback's disproportionate power.

On Sunday, he posted on Twitter: "In a recent discussion on US$ I inadvertently used words "financial terrorist" which I would like to correct. What I meant was that a reserve currency has disproportionate power, whether it is nostro account, 500 bps rate increase, or emerging countries holding $ for liquidity."

He said the status of American dollar as a reserve dollar gives it power to regulate international trade, putting other countries in a dependent position while transacting.

Kotak stated during his speech at an event that he thinks the world is searching for a new reserve currency at this crucial juncture in history. He said other nations, including Europe, the UK, Japan, and China, lacked the prerequisites for designating their currencies as reserve currencies.

In the event, Kotak also commented that in order to establish the rupee as a reserve currency, the country needs to concentrate on creating strong institutions and a framework that is independent of the whims of others.

Kotak Mahindra Bank on Saturday reported 26.3 per cent year-on-year rise in its March quarter standalone net profit at Rs 3,495.6 crore. Its net interest income (NII) jumped 35 per cent YoY to Rs 6,102.6 crore.

The bank's net non-performing asset decreased to Rs 1,193.30 crore in the fourth quarter, against Rs 1,736.71 crore in the year-ago period. In percentage terms, the net NPA improved further to 0.37 per cent of net advances as against 0.64 per cent in the year-ago period.