The IMF on Monday raised India's growth projection to 7.3 per cent for fiscal 2025-26, up 0.7 percentage point from its October forecast, on the back of better-than-expected performance of the economy. The Washington-headquartered multilateral lending agency has also revised India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth forecast to 6.4 per cent for fiscal year 2026-27 beginning April 1, 2026, from its earlier estimate of 6.2 per cent.
Strong domestic growth will continue to draw foreign investment into the Indian economy, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Tuesday. He said this was reflected in recent free trade agreements and investment commitments by large technology companies.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said the country needs big and world-class banks, and discussions are on with the Reserve Bank and lenders in this regard.
Enforcement agencies have highlighted risks related to money laundering and terror financing, prompting closer scrutiny of crypto platforms operating in India.
Banks cannot treat compliance as a quarter-end activity, and must have stronger operational discipline and data governance throughout the year, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Swaminathan J said in a speech at the Third Annual Global Conference of the College of Supervisors.
The country's largest lender SBI is open to collaborating with foreign banks once the Reserve Bank makes it possible for local banks to do acquisition finance, its chairman CS Setty said on Tuesday. Speaking to reporters, weeks after the central bank announced its intent to allow Indian banks to fund companies for executing domestic acquisitions, Setty acknowledged that the "MNC (multinational companies) banks" are dominant in the space.
Beginning next month, a bank customer can opt for up to four nominees in her or his account with a view to ensure uniformity, and efficiency in claim settlement across the banking system. The key provisions relating to Nomination under the Banking Laws (Amendment) Act, 2025 will come into effect from November 1, 2025, a finance ministry statement said on Thursday.
The relation between a regulator and its regulated entities is collaborative and not adversarial with the common objective of maintaining the stability and credibility of the financial system. However, the action on regulated entities like penalties and business restrictions are the last resort, Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Friday.
Fraud reported by banks declined in 2024-2025 to 23,953 as compared to 36,060 in the previous year though the amount involved jumped to Rs 36,014 crore from Rs 12,230 crore.
The Indian banking sector could be due for a rise in profitability after several quarters of net interest margin (NIM) compression. The Q2FY26 results suggest NIMs have bottomed out.
New investors should enter gradually and with a long horizon. 'Staggered investment through systematic purchase plans is advisable rather than lump-sum buying.'
The aggregate net worth of the country's 176 dollar billionaires dropped to $984.2 billion during 2025, down from a record $1,036.2 billion at the end of December 2024.
Fitch Ratings on Thursday raised India's GDP growth forecast for the current fiscal to 7.4 per cent, from 6.9 per cent, on increased consumer spending and improved sentiment boosted by GST reforms.
Among the Sensex constituents, Asian Paints, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki India, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Tata Consultancy Services, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance, UltraTech Cement, Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles were the laggards. However, Eternal, Titan, Adani Ports, Bharat Electronics Ltd, State Bank of India, Bajaj Finserv, NTPC and Bharti Airtel were among the gainers.
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.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was a net seller of the US dollar in August, reversing its net buying position from July. During the current financial year up to August, the central bank had sold a net $1.11 billion. The RBI sold a net total of $6.49 billion worth of the foreign currency in August, according to the central bank's monthly bulletin.
As deposit growth lags credit expansion, Indian banks face shrinking low-cost Casa inflows, rising funding costs, and structural shifts driven by UPI, e-Kuber, and digital savings trends, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
India's household debt climbed to 41.3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) at the end of March 2025, marking a sustained rise from its five-year average of 38.3 per cent, with consumption-related loans accounting for bulk of the borrowings, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its Financial Stability Report.
Public sector banks' (PSBs') employee count grew for the first time in five years while private sector banks' staff strength saw a decline in 2024-25 (FY25), according to latest data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The employee count of state-owned lenders rose 0.22 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to 757,641 at the end of March 31, 2025 from 756,015 in FY24.
Banks will be able to give loans to Indian companies for acquiring the entire equity stake or a controlling part of it in domestic or foreign firms as strategic investment that creates long-term value rather than for short-term financial restructuring if the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) draft circular, issued on Friday, comes to fruition.
Gold prices are likely to trade firm next week as traders await key economic data, including US inflation numbers, for fresh cues on interest rate outlook, while silver may remain volatile amid shifting risk sentiment and speculative activity, analysts said.
India's forex reserves dropped by $6.925 billion to $695.355 billion during the week ended October 24, the RBI said on Friday.
For commercial banks to float subsidiaries, approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may not remain mandatory, according to highly placed sources.
India was being evaluated for a potential weight of around 1 per cent in the index, an allocation that could have translated into $25 billion of inflows, spread over roughly 10 months.
Sanjay Malhotra has made structural changes to banking regulation to bring down costs and increase efficiency. Plus, he kicked off a benign interest regime. But there are challenges ahead.
India has managed high government debt-to-GDP, a slowing domestic revenue engine, lower household savings and a more hostile geopolitical environment separately in the past. But together, they threaten to undo the growth narrative on which today's optimism rests, warns Debashis Basu.
The pickup was driven partly by fresh corporate investment but more by higher working-capital demand.
The bull-market in gold is not yet over and prices can rise to $6,200 an ounce (oz) by mid-2026, up nearly 25 per cent from current levels, according to UBS.
'Corporates now have multiple funding sources beyond banks, and many are sitting on large cash reserves.'
India's forex reserves fell by $276 million to $699.96 billion during the week ended October 3, according to RBI data. In the previous reporting week, India's forex reserves had dropped by $2.33 billion to $700.24 billion.
As India's biggest Unified Payments Interface (UPI) app PhonePe prepares to list, the updated draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) shows the impact of regulations on the business, and concentration of payments-linked revenue even as UPI lacks MDR (merchant discount rate).
'There are no additional benefits for banks and market participants to use CBDC...'
'We have seen that stablecoins lack the basic attributes of money, their advantages are neither unique nor unambiguous and their risks are all too real.'
But selectively, with regulatory scrutiny and special approval, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
'Economic activity appears to have peaked in the second quarter of FY26, with industrial output, exports, and business confidence all softening from October 2025.'
Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Friday said the central bank does not target any band for the rupee in the forex market, and allows the domestic currency to find its own correct level.
Market sentiment is likely to remain cautious as investors position themselves for the upcoming Union Budget and the US Fed's interest rate decision, where expectations are muted.
India's forex reserves increased by $4.496 billion to $702.28 billion for the week ended October 17, as the value of gold reserves rose further, the RBI said on Friday.
The forthcoming Budget could think of maintaining public capital expenditure at 3 per cent so that domestic resources are available for private investments, points out N R Bhanumurthy.
The RBI has flagged concerns over rising volatility in gold prices and advised lenders to exercise caution in the gold loan segment.
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