According to sources, all the three banks have put in their bids and completed their respective presentations to Bankam's top brass in Hongkong. Stanchart chief executive, Rana Talwar has already gone on record saying that his bank has put in its bid. Citibank and Amex declined to comment on whether they have bid for Bankam's retail operations. Anuroop Singh, head of retail bank, Bankam, also refused to comment at this stage.

While Stanchart is looking to strengthen its already substantial network of 23 branches in India and 20 branches in Singapore and widen its auto finance base (it has a loan portfolio of Rs 450 crore), for Amex bank this presents an ideal opportunity to acquire a ready-made network for its retail banking operations. A late entrant to retail banking in India, this acquisition will put Amex into some kind of reckoning with other foreign banks in the country.

While Amex bank and Stanchart are interested in the retail banking network of Bankam, Citibank has expressed interest in the bank's auto finance loan portfolio, which according to reports has been estimated in excess of Rs 800 crore.

Amex started its retail operations in India only in September 1998 and has four branches in the four metro cities. It has tied up with Karvy Consultants and Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) through which it is offering its products.

According to sources Bankam is expected to shortlist and start diligent exercise on the bids sometime in early February. The entire sale is expected to be effected by the financial year end.

Bankam's total asset base, as on march 31, 1998 was close to Rs 4000 crore, out of which retail assets are around Rs 1000 crore.

Bankam has been in retail banking in India from 1993 onwards but its operations have been relatively modest and nowhere near the scale of operations of other foreign banks.

The bank, it may be recalled, made a formal announcement on December 10 on its decision to sell off its entire retail business in India, Singapore and Taiwan as part of its Asian restructuring programme.

The bank has only four branches in the four metro cities in the country. Its branch network in the other countries is also modest.