From correspondents in West Bengal, India, 08:00 PM IST

State-run UCO Bank will invest Rs.45 crore in its proposed general insurance company, a top bank official said here Friday.

'We will pick up a 30-percent stake in the general insurance venture, which will have a capital base of Rs.150 crore,' the bank's chairman and managing director S.K. Goel said at a press conference.

Goel refused to name the other partners but said a foreign entity would pick up a 26 percent stake.

The bank also obtained shareholders' approval Friday for a follow-on public offer (FPO) to raise Rs.136 crore.

'We are eyeing a price of not less than Rs.50 a share for our FPO, which will probably be launched during the September-December period,' Goel said.

The FPO will bring down the government's stake in the bank to 52 percent from 64 percent currently.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)