All along, we were told SIR was an essential exercise carried out as part of the Election Commission's regular duties. But now that the ideological mentor of the ruling party has declared that SIR is a means of detecting infiltrators, one understands the unseemly haste with which it is being carried out, notes Jyoti Punwani.
The rupee witnessed a volatile trading session and settled for the day on a slightly lower note, down 1 paisa at 90.66 against the US dollar on Monday, as traders assessed the details of the India-US interim trade framework.
The rupee appreciated 13 paise to close at 90.34 against the US dollar on Thursday, on trade deal optimism and overnight decline in commodity prices, even as the upside remained capped as investors look for more clarity on the India-US trade deal.
Veteran banker and former chairman of HDFC Ltd Deepak Parekh has said that ICICI Bank had made an offer to take over mortgage lender HDFC Ltd but it was declined. HDFC Ltd, the parent entity of HDFC Bank, later merged with its banking subsidiary to create the country's biggest private sector lender.
Banking operations at public sector banks across the country were impacted on Tuesday as the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) went on nationwide strike demanding the immediate implementation of a five-day work week.
The Supreme Court has sought responses from the Centre, the CBI and others on a plea filed by a 78-year-old retired banker who was duped of Rs 23 crore after allegedly being put under "digital arrest" for nearly a month.
The loss of input tax credit (ITC) following the rationalisation of the goods and services tax (GST) on individual life and health insurance from 18 per cent to nil is may weigh on the profits of life insurers in the third quarter (Q3) of 2025-26 (FY26).
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 stock indices Sensex and Nifty dived sharply by nearly 2 per cent on Sunday after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed a hike in the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) on derivatives. Reversing the early gains, the 30-share BSE Sensex plunged sharply by 2,370.36 points or 2.88 per cent to slide below the 80,000-mark at 79,899.42 in afternoon trade as the finance minister announced a hike in STT on futures contracts to 0.05 per cent from the current 0.02 per cent.
This is the second-worst performance by the pack during this period over the last five years since CY20.
HDFC Bank has denied Lilavati Trust's allegation that the bank's MD and CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan was involved in a series of financial frauds. The allegation levelled by Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust (LKMM Trust), its trustees and officials against the bank's MD and CEO are baseless and malicious, an HDFC Bank's spokesperson said.
Launching a fresh attack on HDFC Bank MD and CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan, Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust (LKMM Trust) on Monday said the trust or its permanent trustee Prashant Kishor Mehta has no outstanding dues to the private bank. It has never borrowed a single rupee from the bank nor they are connected to the borrowing company (Splendour Gems Ltd) in question whatsoever, LKMM said in a statement.
Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, State Bank of India, UltraTech Cement and HDFC Bank were also among the gainers. In contrast, Eternal, Asian Paints, Bharat Electronics, Sun Pharma and Maruti were among the laggards.
The rupee, which was the worst performing Asian currency in 2025 and also in January, was the best performing Asian currency on Tuesday.
India's private-sector banks are likely to lose market share for a second consecutive year in 2025-26, as their loan books continue to expand much slower than overall bank credit.
All three Bharti group companies outperformed in CY25 but the biggest gain came from Bharti Airtel, the flagship.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Asian Paints, Trent, State Bank of India, Hindustan Unilever, UltraTech Cement, ICICI Bank and Bharti Airtel were among the gainers. On the other hand, Infosys, Bajaj Finance, Bharat Electronics, Larsen & Toubro and HDFC Bank were the laggards.
Ask rediffGURU and PF expert Nitin Narkhede your mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty closed higher in a range-bound trade on Tuesday following gains in Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank. The 30-share BSE Sensex rose by 90.83 points or 0.11 per cent to settle at 83,697.29 with 13 of its constituents closing higher and 17 in the red.
Silver prices rallied sharply by Rs 15,000 to hit a lifetime high of Rs 265,000 per kg in the national capital on Monday, and gold advanced to a fresh record of Rs 144,600 per 10 grams, mirroring strong gains in the global markets.
The life insurance industry recorded nearly 40 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth in new business premiums (NBP), aided by the rationalisation of goods and services tax (GST) on individual life insurance premiums, which has made policies more affordable for consumers.
After two years of strong gains, smallcap stocks fell sharply in 2025, but the correction may be setting up opportunities for long-term investors.
Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust (LKMM Trust) on Friday said it has filed a Rs 1,000 crore civil defamation lawsuit against HDFC Bank MD & CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan, over a series of malicious, and false statements made against the Trust and its permanent trustee, Prashant Mehta.
HDFC Bank's managing director and chief executive officer Sashidhar Jagdishan has approached the Bombay high court, seeking quashing of the FIR registered against him based on the financial fraud allegations made by the Lilavati Trust, which oversees the Mumbai-based Lilavati Hospital.
'The volatility in the stock markets since September 2024 has hurt the pace of accretion of new investors.'
The Indian rupee, swaying through multiple headwinds, tiding over global trade disruptions and massive foreign fund outlfows, is unlikely to arrest its descent until tariff impact overhangs, notwithstanding robust domestic macroeconomic tailwinds. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which sees the rupee's depreciation as a silver bullet to offset the tariff shock, expects the currency to find its stable course once India reaches a trade deal with its largest trading partner, the US.
State-owned Bank of Baroda (BoB) on Sunday said it has cut its benchmark lending rate linked to repo rate by 50 basis points in line with the RBI's rate reduction. Meanwhile, private sector HDFC Bank reduced its Marginal Cost of Funds-based Lending Rates (MCLR) by 10 basis points across tenure, which will benefit borrowers whose loans are linked to this benchmark.
The 12-month programme is expected to offer shorter internship duration in the third phase of the pilot in certain sectors such as services.
'The government's decision to keep interest rates unchanged on small savings schemes will certainly constrain banks' ability to cut deposit rates further.'
A national rollout will take place after the pilot test in which SBI, PNB, Axis Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Canara Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, IndusInd Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and Punjab & Sind Bank are participating.
ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company has set a price band of Rs 2,061- Rs 2,165 per share for its Rs 10,600-crore initial public offering (IPO) that will open on Friday. At the upper end of the band, the country's largest asset manager will command a valuation of Rs 1.07 trillion.
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.
Ask rediffGURU Reetika Sharma your insurance, mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
The rupee slumped 5 per cent in 2025 as persistent capital outflows from foreign investors, alongside heightened dollar demand from importers, making it one of the worst-performing Asian currencies.
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.
In November, six primary market issuances accounted for more than 13,000 crore of net equity investments by MFs.
Several benches of the Bombay high court have recused from hearing HDFC Bank CEO and MD Sashidhar Jagdishan's plea to quash an FIR of cheating and fraud registered against him on a complaint filed by the Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust. While some judges cited having worked with either the Trust or the lawyers appearing for it, one judge on Thursday voluntarily disclosed that he held few shares of the HDFC Bank.
Major fund houses report a sharp rise in online transactions, driven by changing investor habits, distributor behaviour, and fast-growing fintech platforms.
The rupee recovered 55 paise from its all-time low level to close at 90.38 against the US dollar after a volatile trade on Wednesday, amid suspected aggressive central bank intervention.
While 28,141 applicants accepted internship in round one, in the second phase this was down to 24,638.
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