Corp Bank denies Pune cooperative takeover report

MUMBAI, Mar 7 (Reuters): State-run Corporation Bank denied a newspaper report Monday it was in takeover talks with Pune-based Rupee Cooperative Bank to expand in the state of Maharashtra. "The report is absolutely wrong. We were earlier looking at it (but) now we don't have any interest in the co-operative," Ramnath Pradeep, chairman and managing director , told the reporter over the telephone. "In Maharashtra, there are no other avenues, only by way of branches I'm going ahead (with expansion)." According to the report, the state-run lender is in talks to acquire the Pune-based cooperative bank to expand its footprint in Maharashtra.