KARVY, CAMS launch `FINNET` and Nucleus FinnOne with DB

KARVY, CAMS launch `FINNET`

Computer Age Management Services (CAMS) & Karvy Computershare (KCPL), the two largest service providers of the mutual fund industry have joined hands to launch `FINNET`.

The product, designed for mutual fund distributors, will enhance the services to stakeholders in increasing geographical footprints, improve operational efficiencies and most importantly reduce cost significantly.

This is the first time that two the biggest registrar and transfer agents, who between them service 95% of the MF industry, have come together to offer a unified product. FINNET `is an all in one engine` product which facilitates transacting (order placement), execution and customer service on an integrated system. It will empower the distributors and individual financial advisors (IFAs) to cut across geographic barriers, access information relating to and transact on the schemes of nearly all the mutual funds through an internet enabled user interface.

Speaking at the launch, V Ganesh, country head, KCPL said, ``We are delighted to launch `FINNET` which will help create a strong value proposition amongst the distributors and eliminate duplicated efforts by distributors as well as investors. Distributors can aggregate their customer portfolio and provide a number of value added services with embedded CRM tools available in the product.``

The new model will facilitate multi-manager funds service support across mutual funds and better access to information than ever before. It will also empower the distributors to transact up to 3 pm from their offices without any geographical limitations. It will enable the distributors to generate consolidated account statements across all funds, thereby further strengthening client engagement and boosting customer service.

NK Prasad, executive director & chief operating officer CAMS said, ``This partnership will extend an all embracing management reporting and decision support ensuing better customer service at a fraction of cost and negligible risk.``

This initiative will go a long way in achieving substantial market penetration and in bringing in additional retail investors to participate in mutual funds.

CAMS is the largest service provider to Indian mutual fund industry providing comprehensive package of transaction processing and customer care.

KCPL is the largest integrated registrar and transfer agent in the country servicing more than 350 corporates and 23 domestic mutual funds.

Nucleus FinnOne boosts Dhanlaxmi Bank’s retail lending ops

Dhanalaxmi Bank, a known player in the Indian banking sector, had many issues to deal with when it decided to diversify its retail assets. Earlier, the bank was not aggressive about retail lending. So it got by with the support of an outsourcing partner which managed Oracle Flexcube (the bank’s core banking system). However, the bank wanted to change this arrangement and tap lending potential across India. To accomplish this task, Dhanlaxmi Bank decided to opt for a retail lending solution.
Before deciding on Nucleus FinnOne, Dhanlaxmi Bank wanted the software vendor to fulfill three criteria. The first condition was that its software should be widely used. Second, the solution had to be tested at multiple sites for scalability and reliability. Ease of use was the third criteria.
Keeping these as the selection criteria, Dhanlaxmi Bank conducted evaluations of available software (considered products include retail offerings from Laser Soft and Oracle Flexcube). These were evaluated in an attempt to extend existing systems to cover the loan department.

Canadian working women campaign for 25-hour day

TORONTO: Ever feel like there aren't enough hours in the day? A group of time-challenged Canadian women are lobbying for a 25-hour clock.

Jessie Behan, president and founder of the 25th Hour Coalition which is group of Canadian women who have changed to a longer day, said the struggle for women to maintain work-life balance motivated her to research the body's natural circadian rhythms.

"A bunch of my girlfriends are having kids, getting married, and I was seeing the insanity of juggling all that when you're a working woman," she told Reuters.

"Women like myself are sick of living their lives by a 24-hour clock when studies have shown that they're naturally set to a 25-hour clock."

A 2007 study by Charles Czeisler, a Harvard professor of sleep medicine, found that a switch to longer days could be beneficial, especially for frequent travelers, shift workers, astronauts and those who experience trouble sleeping or waking.

In a similar study published in 1999, Czeisler showed that the body's natural clock, or circadian rhythms, averages 24 hours and 11 minutes in both young and older people.

The transition from university student in Montreal to working woman in Toronto led Behan to want more time, but it was the thought of planning her pending nuptials that changed the want into a must-have.

Behan, who has been practicing the time shift for more than three weeks, adds an extra 30 minutes to each 12-hour cycle, allowing her to gain an extra hour of productivity.

"Now I have time to plan my wedding a bit more. It's extra padding. It's only four percent more time everyday but it adds up," she said, noting the extra hour has afforded her the time to rebuild her deck and begin to teach herself Mandarin.

The current 360-degree clock has 720 minutes, giving each minute 0.5 degrees, she explains. With the new 25-hour day, 30 minutes is added to each 12-hour period making each minute 0.48 degrees.

While still a relatively small movement, the 25th Hour Coalition has 160 Facebook members, Behan is hoping for large changes.

"The goal is to get as many women on board; there is no harm in just trying it out and seeing. If it gets big, maybe the government will decide to standardize it."

Behan is quick to silence detractors, pointing out the manipulation and measurement of time has been evolving throughout history -- most notably, the current system of daylight savings time.

"Weekends were invented in 1732. The British prime minister just wanted to go hunting so that's how Saturdays evolved," she said.

A recent online survey by Reader's Digest, which included 150 people in each of the 13 countries, suggests it's not just Canadians looking for longer days. Readers were asked "what would you do with an extra hour" if given a choice between sleep, work, exercise and family time.

In Spain, half of respondents said they would like an extra hour in the day to devote to family time. The same was found for respondents in Brazil, the U.S. and Britain, who chose family time over sleep, which came in at a close second.

Only in India did work top the list with 50 percent of respondents claiming they could use an extra hour at the office.