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Non-Tech : ICICI Ltd - (Nyse: IC) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mohan Marette who wrote (190)	2/19/2000 1:55:00 AM
From: Mohan Marette	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 494

ICICI to provide anywhere financial services ICICI Ltd is developing a large wireless-platform project for providing the entire range of financial services to customer via a hand-held wireless device that could be operated from anywhere, its chief executive officer and managing director K V Kamath told Bridge News late Thursday. " This is our next big move, beyond e-commerce and e-banking," he said. The Project, using WAP (wireless application protocol) technology, will be a 'practical reality' in a year's time, he added. The project will see ICICI forging several partnerships with telecom companies and other intermediaries to provide the services on a national platform. " WAP will provide a wide range of financial services from banking to broking to financial information. It will even extend to booking tickets and paying bills " Kamath said. ICICI will be one of the pioneers of such a project in the world, he said, adding, so far, an example has been set only in Japan. " The project will operate on the basic platform of a triangular partnership, involving the financial service provider, the communication service provider and 'fulfillers' or intermediaries who link the first two and the customers," he said. " We are already in discussions with several telecom companies as well as other potential intermediaries," Kamath said. " The particular hand-held device has not been finalized. It will be databased to make the communication cheaper and faster. It will have integrated facilities of the Internet as well as other advanced communication modes. It could be a merged form of a cell phone and a palm PC," he said. The institution is still in the process of estimating its initial initiatives, he said. " The next phase of our Web based business initiatives will evolve around portals. We are building specialized portals to market our retail products. First ones to hit the web will be separate portals for our home and auto loans," Kamath said. " Each of these portals will cost Rs 5-10 crore and will be in place within the next 60-90 days. We will also look at investing in existing portals if they could add value to our services," he said. Feb 19, 2000 -WalletWatch