The Exim Bank has requested the Reserve Bank to increase its leverage ratio so that it can lend more to the exporters. It has cited the urgent need for turning the country into an export powerhouse and the prevalent practices in competing nations. Currently, RBI allows the Exim Bank to leverage only 10 times of its net-owned funds, which it wants to be hiked to at least 15 times. Newly-appointed chairman and managing director Yaduvendra Mathur said, EXIM bank is classified at par with a commercial bank which restricts its capacity to help exporters.He said EXIM Bank's counterpart in China has a leverage of 77.5 times. At present, the bank has to depend on government infusions to increase its capacity to lend.