The two companies have also entered into a strategic e-commerce alliance under which HSBC will enable the processing of transactions on Dishnet's portal through HSBC's credit card infrastructure.

According to Zarir J. Cama, CEO of HSBC (India), the bank's Internet initiative is expected to be launched by the end of this year.

"A host of Internet services would be provided to the Web customer, which would match international standards, and this would help widen our customer base," he added.

Currently, HSBC has a customer base of 700,000 in the country.

HSBC has an equity stake of around 10 percent in Dishnet through their private equity arms in Hong Kong (which accounts for US$5 million) and India (which accounts for US$2 million).

As a result of this new collaboration, HSBC customers would also be able to use Dishnet's fifty-odd cyber cafes in 17 cities across the country.

Dishnet would also provide special benefits to HSBC customers for ISP dialup and digital subscriber line services, though the terms and conditions are yet to be worked out.

The services provided might not include those that require surrendering credit card numbers or such sensitive information.

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"We would like to wait for cyber laws to be in place before venturing into any such initiative, owing to security considerations," Cama said.