Deutsche Postbank eyes more disbursals

With the real estate market picking up once again, Deutsche Postbank Home Finance Ltd a 100% subsidiary of Deutsche Postbank Group, the largest retail bank in Germany is looking at 40% more disbursal by 2011.

Achim Vogt, managing director, Deutsche Postbank, said, "We are expecting to disburse Rs 750 crore before we close our H1 in September. We hope to pick up further in the second half due to the festive season and tax saving investments by buyers."

Vogt is expecting to reach the Rs 1,600-crore disbursal mark by the end of this financial year, which will be 25% higher than last year's disbursal of Rs 1,300 crore. Vogt said the momentum in the home loan market is picking up and will grow further. However, the properties need to be available at the correct price.

The firm is expecting a 20% hike in profit at Rs 55 crore in FY10, compared to Rs 44 crore last year. The company, which operates mostly in metros and tier-I cities, disburses more loans in the Rs 15 lakh to Rs 25 lakh category, which comes to 60% of its total portfolio. The rest of its portfolio consists of loans between Rs 30 lakh and Rs 50 lakh. Currently, it is experiencing higher growth of home loans in northern and western parts of India, which is around 15%.

The company has also increased its branches from 15 to 25. Two processing centres were opened in Delhi and Bangalore last year and a third one is coming up in Mumbai soon. The direct sales team has been strengthened to 300 from 150 and direct sales agents were increased from 180 to 270 last year. Deutsche is also into non-home loans, which constitute 10% of its portfolio currently.