'The government's decision to keep interest rates unchanged on small savings schemes will certainly constrain banks' ability to cut deposit rates further.'
Banks are depending more heavily on the market for certificates of deposit (CDs), whose worth climbed to a record Rs 5.75 trillion in the fortnight to January 15, owing to deposit tightness in the system.
Private sector lender IDFC First Bank has lowered its savings account rates and introduced new slabs for small and medium balance categories, effective January 9, 2025, as per its website. The interest slabs and rates for higher balance accounts remain unchanged. Despite the revision, the bank continues to offer one of the highest savings account interest rates in the industry among mid-sized banks.
After a 25 basis point rate cut in December, the RBI on Friday decided to pause on the policy rate front amid geopolitical uncertainties.
Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Friday said the key policy rates will remain at low levels for a long period and may go down even further.
Stock markets closed higher on Friday after the Reserve Bank of India kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged as expected and proposed allowing banks to lend to Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) with certain prudential safeguards to deepen the financing pool for the real estate sector.
The quantum of fraud detected by the bank is more than the 503 crore net profit it reported for the October-December quarter of 2025-2026.
Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded sharply by nearly 1 per cent on Monday, driven by strong buying in power, banking, and financial stocks.
'There is a challenge in repositioning yourself, maybe reinventing yourself.'
Banking sector has witnessed healthy growth in advances in the third quarter of financial year 2026 (Q3FY26) against the same period last year, as the full impact of goods and service tax (GST) rate cuts drove growth. Most of the lenders saw their credit growth outpace the deposit growth in the quarter.
Benchmark Sensex tumbled 1,236 points or 1.5 per cent while Nifty closed near 25,450 on Thursday following an across-the-board sell-off amid escalating geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran.
The Reserve Bank of India on Friday proposed to allow banks to lend to Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) with certain prudential safeguards to deepen the financing pool for the real estate sector.
Bank lending to companies is expected to go up in the coming quarters because the difference in interest rates between corporate bonds and bank loans has narrowed. In addition, recent policy reforms by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), including allowing domestic banks to do acquisition financing, are expected to give further support to corporate lending, analysts said.
'In the last one year, we have added more than Rs 1.7 trillion, and we are on track.'
The banking sector could see better loan growth in the third quarter of financial year 2026 (Q3FY26) with improved net interest margins (NIMs), though the full impact of latest rate cuts will be largely felt in the fourth quarter. There may be lower slippage in unsecured loans and microfinance institutions (MFIs) along with steady recovery trends, which should lower credit cost.
OTP scams accounted for over one-fourth of all cyber frauds.
Cleaner balance sheets, regulatory support and strong growth prospects helped Indian private banks attract over $6 billion in foreign capital, with more deals expected in 2026.
The RBI will now charge banks different deposit insurance fees based on how risky they are, allowing safer banks to pay less premium.
Banks are witnessing a surge in hiring for sales staff in secured segments such as home, vehicle and gold loans as compared to the recovery category, driven by a boost in business growth, and a host of regulatory measures aimed at improving ease of doing business, according to industry experts.
Mastercard and Visa are introducing passkeys that will allow users to authenticate card payments with face scans or fingerprints, eliminating the need for one-time passwords (OTPs).
Investors are moving away from the commercial paper (CP) market towards certificates of deposit (CDs), as primary CD issuances and rates on these short-term instruments rise.
The easing of external commercial borrowing (ECB) norms by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is expected to significantly boost overseas fundraising by Indian companies, market participants said.
Reliance Industries cracked 4.42 per cent, while ITC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, InterGlobe Aviation, and HDFC Bank were also among the laggards. However, ICICI Bank, Sun Pharma, Hindustan Unilever, and State Bank of India were among the gainers.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra, and Deputy Governors Poonam Gupta, T Rabi Sankar, Swaminathan J, and S C Murmu on Friday addressed issues during the post-policy media interaction.
The Reserve Bank on Tuesday proposed greater flexibility to authorised persons to undertake foreign exchange transactions for hedging their exposures, balance sheet management and market-making, as well as to ease reporting obligations, after a review of the current regulations.
rediffGURU T S Khurana answers readers' personal income tax queries
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in its Financial Stability Report (FSR), cautioned that stress tests indicate two scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) may have to dip into their capital conservation buffers (CCBs), unless stakeholders infuse capital, under a scenario involving a gradual slowdown in domestic GDP growth and a moderate rise in inflation, with limited policy easing space available to the central bank.
Wholesale price inflation extended upward momentum for the third straight month, at 1.81 per cent in January, driven by an uptick in prices of food, non-food articles, and manufactured items on a month-on-month basis, government data showed on Monday.
Google has unveiled the Pixel 10a in India and worldwide, expanding its Pixel series. The device can be pre-ordered through the brand's online store and an e-commerce platform, with sales starting next month.
Benchmark BSE Sensex fell 558 points on Thursday amid heavy selling in IT shares, as concerns over AI-led disruptions and waning hopes of a Fed rate cut after firm US economic data weighed on investor sentiment.
'Uncertainty level A in the morning, uncertainty level B in the afternoon. If I answer about tariff rates now, I'll be outdated by the evening.'
'LIC will reduce but not fully exit its stake in IDBI Bank, which remains an important bancassurance partner,' says LIC of India' MD and CEO R Doraiswamy.
Gold prices fell by Rs 400 to Rs 1.6 lakh per 10 grams in the national capital on Thursday amid weak global trends and receding expectations of an interest rate cut by the US Federal Reserve.
Benchmark lending rates unchanged with repo rate at 5.25%
'Rate cut looks unlikely and there is reason to believe that the cycle is over.'
* Repo rate reduced by 25bps to 5.25 pc; * 4th rate cut, totalling 125 bps, since February 2025; * MPC also decided to continue with neutral stance; * GDP growth forecast for FY26 raised to 7.3 pc from 6.8 pc;
'Credit growth in India remains in double digits, even though corporate borrowing is subdued.' 'Corporate credit is weak because companies are cash-rich and cautious amid global uncertainty.'
The Indian economy is growing at a robust pace, driven by strong domestic demand, low inflation, and the healthy balance sheets of banks, said a Reserve Bank report released on Wednesday.
The rupee declined 31 paise to settle at 90.65 against the US dollar on Friday, weighed down by geopolitical uncertainties over the US-Iran talks, and a sharp rise in global crude oil prices.
Nearly two-thirds of external commercial borrowings (ECBs) raised so far in the ongoing financial year (2025-26/FY26) have been routed through Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), a sharp jump from the 36 per cent recorded in 2024-25.
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