Latest news with #ReserveBankofIndia
Time of India
29 minutes ago
- Business
- Time of India
Fino Payments Bank fined by RBI for breaking rules
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday announced that it has imposed a fine of Rs 29.6 lakh on Fino Payments Bank Limited. The penalty is for not following certain rules related to the Licensing of Payments Banks The RBI carried out a regular check (called the Statutory Inspection for Supervisory Evaluation or ISE 2024) of the bank's operations as of March 31, 2024. During this inspection, the central bank found that the bank had not followed all its this, the RBI sent a notice to Fino Payments Bank, asking them to explain why a penalty should not be charged for these lapses. The bank gave a written reply and also made a statement in person. However, after reviewing everything, the RBI decided that the bank had indeed broken the to the RBI, the bank allowed the end-of-day balance in some customer accounts to go beyond the limit set for payments banks. And this happened several times."The bank breached the regulatory ceiling of end of the day balance, as applicable for a payments bank, in certain accounts on several occasions," the apex bank said in a RBI clarified that the fine was only for regulatory shortcomings. It does not question the legality of any deal or agreement the bank had with its from PTI
Reuters
an hour ago
- Business
- Reuters
India's central bank cuts small finance banks' lending requirement to priority sectors
June 20 (Reuters) - India's central bank on Friday reduced the mandated portion of lending that small finance banks have to extend to priority sectors such as agriculture and small businesses, lowering it by 15 percentage points. Small finance banks currently have to extend 75% of their loans to priority sectors. After a review, the Reserve Bank of India has effectively cut the requirement to 60% of total lending.
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Forex boost: India's reserves climb by $2.29 billion to $698.95 billion; led by gains in foreign currency assets and gold
AI image means for representation only India's foreign exchange reserves rose by $2.294 billion to $698.95 billion in the week ended June 13, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday. This follows a $5.17 billion increase in the previous week, taking the total gains over two weeks to nearly $7.5 billion, PTI reported. The all-time high for India's forex reserves was $704.89 billion, recorded at the end of September 2024. According to the RBI, foreign currency assets (FCAs) — the largest component of the reserves — rose by $1.739 billion to $589.43 billion during the latest week. These assets reflect the impact of movement in non-US currencies such as the euro, yen and pound held in the reserves. The gold reserves increased by $428 million to $86.32 billion, while Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) rose by $85 million to $18.76 billion. India's reserve position with the IMF also edged up by $43 million to $4.45 billion, the RBI data showed. Forex reserves act as a buffer to stabilise the rupee and meet India's external payment obligations. The current rise comes amid steady capital inflows and lower crude oil prices. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
RBI Governor pushes for growth-backed policies as global uncertainty clouds India's investment outlook: MPC minutes
RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra cautioned that rising global uncertainty could postpone business investment decisions. He noted that post-COVID recovery has been driven by public investments, with private sector investment remaining weak despite favorable conditions. Malhotra emphasized the necessity of implementing policies that actively support economic growth in the face of these challenges. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Growth and inflation outlook Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Rising global uncertainty may cause businesses to delay investment decisions, Reserve Bank of India Governor Sanjay Malhotra said, stressing the need for policies that support economic growth , in his statement, released on Friday, as a part of the minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting.'On the investment front, the post-Covid recovery so far has been largely led by public investments, while private sector investments have been weak despite high capacity utilisation and improved corporate balance sheets. Moreover, heightened global uncertainties may put on hold investment decisions by businesses, underscoring the need for growth supportive policies,' Malhotra its June meeting, the MPC decided to cut the benchmark repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.5%. The committee expects that this dual-rate cut will significantly reduce lending rates, thereby, encouraging both investment and consumption, particularly in durable the decision, Malhotra said, 'It is expected that the front-loaded rate action along with certainty on the liquidity front would send a clear signal to the economic agents, thereby supporting consumption and investment through lower cost of borrowing.'The RBI had earlier indicated that investment activity is likely to improve, supported by higher capacity utilisation, better corporate balance sheets across both financial and non-financial sectors, and continued capital expenditure by the the overall investment landscape remains uneven. 'Domestically, the recovery of economic growth to 7.4% in Q4:2025 from 6.4% in Q3:2025 was a pleasant surprise. It helped to close the year 2024-25 with 6.5% growth overall. However, the recovery has not been broad-based. It was supported by the rural consumption and government capex. Private investment, especially in manufacturing, and urban consumption, have continued to remain subdued,' said MPC member Nagesh Kumar in his added, 'It is not clear that the growth momentum will continue in the Q1 of the current year, given the fact that consumption and investment growth is moderating. The survey of corporate performance shows that companies are deleveraging their balance sheets with rising profits. Despite the capacity utilisation crossing beyond 75%, the investment intentions in manufacturing have moderated in 2025-26. The difficult external environment is likely to further complicate the economic growth outlook for 2025-26, especially for the manufacturing sector outlook, with implications for job creation. It calls for supporting growth through both fiscal and monetary policy.'Despite the concerns around external volatility, the RBI's rate-setting panel in its June MPC meeting retained its GDP growth forecast for FY26 at 6.5%, with quarterly estimates holding economy grew at 7.4% in the March quarter, marking the fastest pace in the past four quarters. However, the full-year FY25 growth settled at 6.5%, slightly below the average of recent years. Governor Malhotra had acknowledged persistent external challenges such as geopolitical conflicts and changing trade policies, but remained confident in the domestic economic momentum, supported by a strong monsoon forecast and continued strength in the services central bank maintained its quarterly growth projections for FY26 at 6.5% in Q1, 6.7% in Q2, 6.6% in Q3, and 6.3% in Q4. 'Services sector is expected to maintain its momentum. However, spillovers emanating from protracted geopolitical tensions, and global trade and weather-related uncertainties pose downside risks to growth,' the MPC had added that the Indian economy is progressing well and largely in line with expectations, despite the headwinds from the global the inflation front, the RBI had revised its forecast downward for FY26 to 3.7%, from the earlier projection of 4% made in April. The downward revision came amid a sustained drop in price had highlighted that headline inflation fell to a nearly six-year low in April, driven by easing food prices and deflation in fuel. Core inflation remained stable despite global commodity market RBI's latest quarter-wise inflation projections were 2.9% for Q1, 3.4% in Q2, 3.5% in Q3, and 4.4% in Q4. The central bank had stated that risks to the inflation outlook were 'evenly balanced.'With inflation easing and the economy showing selective strength, the RBI and the MPC have chosen to support momentum while remaining cautious of evolving global dynamics.
Economic Times
4 hours ago
- Business
- Economic Times
RBI Governor pushes for growth-backed policies as global uncertainty clouds India's investment outlook: MPC minutes
RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra cautioned that rising global uncertainty could postpone business investment decisions. He noted that post-COVID recovery has been driven by public investments, with private sector investment remaining weak despite favorable conditions. Malhotra emphasized the necessity of implementing policies that actively support economic growth in the face of these challenges. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Growth and inflation outlook Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Rising global uncertainty may cause businesses to delay investment decisions, Reserve Bank of India Governor Sanjay Malhotra said, stressing the need for policies that support economic growth , in his statement, released on Friday, as a part of the minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting.'On the investment front, the post-Covid recovery so far has been largely led by public investments, while private sector investments have been weak despite high capacity utilisation and improved corporate balance sheets. Moreover, heightened global uncertainties may put on hold investment decisions by businesses, underscoring the need for growth supportive policies,' Malhotra its June meeting, the MPC decided to cut the benchmark repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.5%. The committee expects that this dual-rate cut will significantly reduce lending rates, thereby, encouraging both investment and consumption, particularly in durable the decision, Malhotra said, 'It is expected that the front-loaded rate action along with certainty on the liquidity front would send a clear signal to the economic agents, thereby supporting consumption and investment through lower cost of borrowing.'The RBI had earlier indicated that investment activity is likely to improve, supported by higher capacity utilisation, better corporate balance sheets across both financial and non-financial sectors, and continued capital expenditure by the the overall investment landscape remains uneven. 'Domestically, the recovery of economic growth to 7.4% in Q4:2025 from 6.4% in Q3:2025 was a pleasant surprise. It helped to close the year 2024-25 with 6.5% growth overall. However, the recovery has not been broad-based. It was supported by the rural consumption and government capex. Private investment, especially in manufacturing, and urban consumption, have continued to remain subdued,' said MPC member Nagesh Kumar in his added, 'It is not clear that the growth momentum will continue in the Q1 of the current year, given the fact that consumption and investment growth is moderating. The survey of corporate performance shows that companies are deleveraging their balance sheets with rising profits. Despite the capacity utilisation crossing beyond 75%, the investment intentions in manufacturing have moderated in 2025-26. The difficult external environment is likely to further complicate the economic growth outlook for 2025-26, especially for the manufacturing sector outlook, with implications for job creation. It calls for supporting growth through both fiscal and monetary policy.'Despite the concerns around external volatility, the RBI's rate-setting panel in its June MPC meeting retained its GDP growth forecast for FY26 at 6.5%, with quarterly estimates holding economy grew at 7.4% in the March quarter, marking the fastest pace in the past four quarters. However, the full-year FY25 growth settled at 6.5%, slightly below the average of recent years. Governor Malhotra had acknowledged persistent external challenges such as geopolitical conflicts and changing trade policies, but remained confident in the domestic economic momentum, supported by a strong monsoon forecast and continued strength in the services central bank maintained its quarterly growth projections for FY26 at 6.5% in Q1, 6.7% in Q2, 6.6% in Q3, and 6.3% in Q4. 'Services sector is expected to maintain its momentum. However, spillovers emanating from protracted geopolitical tensions, and global trade and weather-related uncertainties pose downside risks to growth,' the MPC had added that the Indian economy is progressing well and largely in line with expectations, despite the headwinds from the global the inflation front, the RBI had revised its forecast downward for FY26 to 3.7%, from the earlier projection of 4% made in April. The downward revision came amid a sustained drop in price had highlighted that headline inflation fell to a nearly six-year low in April, driven by easing food prices and deflation in fuel. Core inflation remained stable despite global commodity market RBI's latest quarter-wise inflation projections were 2.9% for Q1, 3.4% in Q2, 3.5% in Q3, and 4.4% in Q4. The central bank had stated that risks to the inflation outlook were 'evenly balanced.'With inflation easing and the economy showing selective strength, the RBI and the MPC have chosen to support momentum while remaining cautious of evolving global dynamics.
