'I'd like to correct': Uday Kotak clarifies ‘financial terrorist’ statement about US dollar

Uday Kotak, the CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, has provided further clarification on his recent statement about the US dollar being the "biggest financial terrorist in the world." Kotak clarified in a tweet that his statement about the "financial terrorist" was not specifically aimed at the US dollar but rather at the disproportionate power that any reserve currency holds.

According to Kotak, the US dollar's status as a reserve currency gives it an unfair advantage in controlling global transactions, which could potentially result in other countries becoming overly reliant on it. He further elaborated that a reserve currency wields significant power, including the ability to dictate whether money in nostro accounts can be withdrawn, which can have a profound impact on the global financial landscape. Kotak believes that the world is actively searching for an alternative reserve currency and posits that India has the potential to promote the Indian Rupee as a strong contender to fill this role on the global stage. By doing so, he suggested that India can reduce its dependency on the US dollar and promote a more diversified, stable global financial system.

He clarified his previous statement in a tweet saying, "In a recent discussion on the US dollar, 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."

In the March quarter, Kotak Mahindra Bank - the second-largest private bank in India - witnessed a notable increase in its standalone net profit, which rose by 26.3 per cent year-on-year to reach Rs 3,495.6 crore. The bank's net interest income (NII) also saw a significant jump of 35 per cent YoY to reach Rs 6,102.6 crore.

In addition, the bank reported a decrease in its net non-performing assets, which reduced to Rs 1,193.30 crore in the fourth quarter, as compared to Rs 1,736.71 crore in the year-ago period. The net NPA also improved to 0.37 per cent of net advances in percentage terms, as opposed to 0.64 per cent in the year-ago period.