Those of us who have heard and/or seen the bank's recovery agents will only know how dreadful and demeaning it is to be accosted by them, either on phone or physically. Their voice and tenor is deliberately modulated to make you tremble in your knees. Their countenance, meant to put the fear of Yama -the god of death in you. That apart their lingos, adjectives and language would make gutter language appear musical. Even the female tele-callers of this breed are no better. Some pose of lawyers and others as cops with an arrest warrant in their hands ready to execute you at their will. All said and done, if you under stand how a recovery goon works and the law of the land, you will be able to handle the recovery agents properly and not succumb into paying extortionists amounts when the recovery agents comes calling.

If you are new to the world of credit cards, then you need to know the basics before going ahead and choosing the right credit card. Although all the terms and companies offering cards can seem confusing at first, if you do your homework then learning the basics takes no time at all. Here are some hints and tips regarding the basics of using and finding a credit card:

Dena Bank has raised Rs 125 crore by way of hybrid bonds to augment long term resources and to meet its future capital adequacy requirements.

In order to make your credit card payments count as much as possible and to get out of debt sooner, you can try to get lower interest rates. Sometimes card companies will offer a promotional balance transfer that is 1.99% for a six month period of time. Duration of the promotion and interest rates can vary greatly.

The use of credit cards has become more taxing now. Withdrawing cash from your credit card will cost you more. Many credit card companies, banks and building societies have raised their fees for using the credit cards. According to Data analyst Moneyfacts, the main changes include a big rise in fees for withdrawing cash, rises in cash interest rates and increased commission on foreign use and hike in balance transfer fees.

Dena Bank has reported a net profit of Rs 92.1 crore for the quarter ended September and increase of 34% over the net profit of Rs 68.7 crore in the corresponding period last year. The increase in net profit has been largely on account of a 43.5% jump in other income.Also check out it's exclusive credit cards.

Other income rose from Rs 73.8 crore to Rs 105.9 crore in the corresponding period last year. In a statement issued here the bank said that Accounting Standard (AS)-15 (Revised) on Employee Benefits is effective from the current year.

However, pending Reserve Bank of India guidelines, the Bank has provided an adhoc amount of Rs 38.54 crore/Rs 19.94 crore during the half year/quarter on an estimated basis.

Technical Analyst, Vijay Bhambwani is of the view that one can hold Dena Bank with stoploss of Rs 64.

Bhambwani told CNBC-TV18, "In the short-term banking sector might just come under a lot of selling pressure because in the last three-four quarters, you have seen significant amount of long positions being initiated in the F&O segment. Is but natural is when the markets correct the first place to book profits is where the positions are the highest, and Dena Bank is not likely to be any exception to that rule. The long-term outlook on this counter at least chaotically is fairly positive. And as long as the support base at Rs 64 level holds, long-term players are nothing to worry about."

He further added, "If one has the patience and if one can wait for another three-four quarters he/she could hold the stock with a stoploss at Rs 64, give or take Rs 2 here and there that too on a closing basis. Not to worry if this level is violated on an intra-day basis. But if this stock closes above this level on heavy volumes, there would be a trend reversal on the cards. Barring that nothing to worry about please hold."

The House of Lords has delivered disappointing news to credit card companies in the India, after it reached a decision with regards to whether card companies are liable in cases where a customer uses their card to purchase goods or services from abroad, and the goods are damaged or not delivered.

Let's face it: the last thing we need is credit card debt and sometimes our intentions to pay our balances in full each month are made in vain. Low interest credit cards are a worthwhile alternative to no annual fee credit cards, which require squeaky clean credit histories to qualify for at times. However, one card issuer's notion of ‘low interest' may not leave you scrambling to fill out an application. Think about the following if you're considering a low APR credit card:

• Annual Fee-Many low APR credit cards don't charge an annual fee, such as the Advanta Life of Balance Platinum Card. Think of it as dually saving money: on interest and fees.

• Fixed Interest Rate-Cards like the Pulaski Bank Gold Visa offer fixed interest rates of less than 10%, which is a great rate if you don't always pay your balance fully each month.

• Cash Rewards-It isn't always the case that low interest rate credit cards provide great cash-back rewards schemes. The Advanta Life of Balance Platinum Card offers cardholders 6% cash rebates on specified purchases.

• Introductory Offers-We all like receiving special rates and promotions, such as the Pulaski Bank Gold Visa's no interest on balance transfers for 6 months.

There is an immeasurable number of credit cards available to businesses and consumers alike, some with great bonuses, some with none. Low interest rate credit cards are a perfect credit card pick for those who wish to save on interest each month. If you wish to reduce the rate currently attached to a card, making a call to the card issuer may save you money, as many are willing to compromise if you are serious about completing an application or are a long-standing customer. As with any credit card, one should spend with caution to avoid late fees and accrued debt.

Mid-sized public sector Dena Bank on Monday entered into an agreement with credit rating agencies Crisil and Care to offer loan ratings for its existing and potential clients.

While the rating has to be solicited by the customers, it will help the lender in judicious risk weightage to rated customers ranging from 20 per cent to 150 per cent, Bank Chairman P L Gairola told reporters here.

"The tie-up is a win-win situation for both the bank and customer. While the credit rating will help us in Basel II preparations for efficient allocation of capital, it will provide customers bargaining capacity to receive better rate of interest," he said.

Basel II are international norms which lay stress on efficient risk management structures in banks. Lenders which do not have any international operations, like Dena Bank, have to be Basel II compliant by 2009 as per the Reserve Bank.

SBI Funds Management - Investment Managers for SBI Mutual Fund, one of the largest mutual funds in the country has formalized its tie-up with Dena Bank, a leading public sector bank, to qualitatively enhance its reach in the category of mutual fund investors across the country.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was exchanged between Syed Shahabuddin, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, SBI Funds Management Pvt. Ltd. and U.S Kohli, Executive Director, Dena Bank.

SBI Mutual Fund is one of the leading players in the mutual fund having won the CNBC TV-18 Mutual Fund of the Year 2007 in the fund house category and the Most Preferred Mutual Fund Award in 2006 and 2007, awarded by CNBC Awaaz - AC Nielsen. The fund house has an experienced team of fund managers and analyst who continuously monitor market movements to identify stocks that aim to deliver high performance in the future. This team works in tandem with a compliance and risk monitoring department which ensures minimization of operational risks while protecting the interests of the investors. The outcome of this is that the schemes continue to deliver consistent returns to investors and outperform respective benchmark indices. The tie-up with Dena Bank will further enhance the reach of the fund house to investors looking to invest in mutual funds.

Dena Bank plans to enter the non-life insurance business through a tie-up with a foreign or local partner by the next financial year.

Speaking on the sidelines of the annual FICCI Banking Conclave 2007, P L Gairola, chairman and managing director, Dena Bank, said the plans for the joint venture project, with a 26 per cent equity participation by the bank, would be finalised this fiscal.

"The deal is still in the consultation stage. Our stake in the project could be 26 per cent, but may go up to 29 per cent. The joint venture could be a three- or a four-party deal, in which one partner could be an insurance company. The other partners would be banks, most probably local," said Gairola, adding that the bank had no plans to venture into the life insurance sector at present.

Dena Bank has posted a net profit of Rs 18.49 crore for the first quarter ended June 30, 2006, as against the loss of Rs 189.30 crore for the same period last fiscal. Dena Bank Chairman & Managing Director P. L. Gairola said here today that the operating profit for the quarter which was Rs 124.07 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2005, had marginally declined to Rs 117.18 crore mainly due to lower treasury earnings.

Public sector Dena Bank has slashed deposit rates by 50 basis points on its Dena Diamond deposit scheme from 9.5% to 9%.

"To protect our margins, we decided to make this move. We would not like our net interest margins (NIMs) dropping below 3%," said P L Gairola, the bank's chairman and managing director. Dena's NIM was 3.11% for the quarter ended June 2007.

n order to fuel growth and maintain the capital adequacy ratio Dena Bank plans to raise Rs 250-300 crore this year by way of upper Tier-II capital. "We will raise this money by way of fresh subordinate debt. We do not choose to go through the equity route," said Gairola. The capital adequacy ratio of the bank stands at 11.90% as on June 2007.

Dena Bank is also looking forward to enter the credit card and insurance business during the year. "Right now, our credit card base is low. Hence, we plan to tie-up with SBI Cards for co-branded cards," Gairola said.

Dena Bank is all set to make a foray into the credit card and insurance business in 2007.

Chairman and Managing Director, Dena Bank, P L Garodia said that the bank's credit card base is low currently. Hence, they are exploring a possibility tie-up with SBI cards to launch co-branded credit cards.

Mumbai-based public sector lender Dena Bank has reported an over three fold rise in its first quarter net profit, at Rs55.58 crore, compared to Rs18.49 crore in the year-ago period.

Total income increased by 30.17 per cent to Rs702.42 crore for the April-June 2007-08 quarter, compared to Rs539.61 crore for the same quarter of the previous year, Dena Bank said in a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Dena Bank is also in talks to partner State Bank of India (SBI) for issuing co-branded credit cards. Under the tie-up arrangement, SBI would bear the credit risk on the credit card while Dena Bank in turn would receive a royalty for marketing and distributing the card.

Eligibility :

* Farmers, irrespective, of land holdings with

* Regular conduct of the existing loan accounts for last 3 years.

Quantum of loan :

Upto five times the average annual farm income or 50% of the value of land mortgaged as collateral security with a maximum of Rs. 5.00 lacs. Existing term loan outstandings, if any, would be deducted from the 50% value of the land or five average annual income so as to arrive at net eligible amount. The facility would be over and above the existing or proposed production credit limits.

Your opinion