BackGeojit Financial to form JV in Oman
Geojit Financial to form JV in Oman
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Reuters
Mumbai: Geojit Financial Services Ltd said on Monday its board has approved forming a joint venture in the Sultanate of Oman in which it would invest Rs32 million.
Geojit will hold 51% stake in the joint venture, with The Financial Corp Co. SAOJ, it said in a statement. The firm will offer investment services to the expatriate Indian population in Oman and help them invest in India and Saudi Arabia, Managing Director, C.J. George said.
“There is no Indian player in Oman," he said, adding Geojit earlier had a small setup in collaboration with a local firm where it managed the NRI desk of the firm.’
The JV, which would offer brokerage services and distribute financial products, would be operational in 2-3 months and would employ around 10 people, George said.
“In this period of uncertanity, there is no point in starting off with a large setup, we will gradually increase," he said.
Separately, the company’s 58.27% drop in second-quarter profit was due to high employee costs, he said.
Geojit, in which French bank BNP Paribas has a stake, reported a profit of Rs52.2 million in the second quarter against Rs125.1 million in the year-ago period.
The consolidated revenue was Rs506.1 million against Rs510.3 million a year earlier.
“Our revenues have been flat and the profits have been down due to high employee costs as some of the new branches were yet to reach full potential," he said.
Its average daily trading turnover has nearly halved from its peak to around 8 billion rupees now, George said.
Shares in the company were trading 9.34% higher at Rs22.25 in a firm Mumbai market.
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