Banking News

Seth also flagged persistent gaps in health insurance claim settlements, calling for greater transparency and fairness from insurers

RBI recognizes Self-Regulated PSO Association as SRO for Payment System Operators

The omnibus framework contains broad parameters such as objectives, responsibilities, eligibility criteria, governance standards, application process and other basic conditions for grant of recognition, which will be common for any SRO proposed to be recognized by the Reserve Bank.

GDP for H1FY26 seen at 7.4 percent with full-year growth at 6.8 percent, says UBS note

UBS expects India's nominal GDP growth to decelerate to 8.5 percent in FY26, lowest since FY20 (excluding the pandemic), with space for another 25 bps rate cut by the Reserve Bank (RBI) in FY26, before a pause in FY27.

Life insurers’ new business premium rises 12% in October, led by private players

Across categories, individual single-premium rose 6.44 percent year on year to Rs 3,962 crore, while individual non-single premium increased 4.34 percent to Rs 8,871 crore.

Yes Bank emerges as the only top-10 private lender with no ‘buy’ calls

Analysts attribute Yes Bank’s weak earnings and rising retail stress as reasons for  negative investor sentiment

Standalone health insurance market nearly doubles even as Star Health’s dominance halves in 5 years to 32%

Star's aggressive shift towards its retail segment, according to experts, may have hurt Star Health’s ability to capture new market opportunities

HDFC Bank’s MFI chief K Venkatesh set to join Spandana Sphoorty as CEO

In April this year, Shalabh Saxena quit the company and stepped down as MD & CEO with immediate effect. Ashish Damani, the then CFO, was elevated as interim CEO.

Indian rupee opens flat on support from Trump’s trade optimism

Amid the ongoing India-US trade deal negotiations, President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that they are going to "bring down the tariffs" imposed on New Delhi.

All you need to know about Non-Deliverable Forward market

NDFs are commonly used by investors to mitigate currency risk in emerging market economies, when the underlying currency is volatile.

RBI ramps up defence of rupee near record lows, curbs excess volatility

Market participants said such operations reflect the RBI’s intent to smooth volatility rather than defend any specific level of the currency, ensuring stability amid periods of excess speculative pressure.

Banks' CD issuances fell sharply by 58 percent in October on comfortable liquidity

Punjab National Bank, SIDBI, Axis Bank, IDFC First Bank and Bank of India remained top five issuers in October raising around Rs 37,490 crore.

Credit guarantee scheme worth Rs 20,000 crore soon for NBFC-MFIs to ease liquidity crunch

Expected to be announced in the coming weeks, the relief package for NBC-MFIs is aimed at providing liquidity support to the sector.

Benign CPI inflation revives rate cut hopes, RBI to weigh growth data before decision

According to economists, the recent easing of inflation cannot be interpreted as a signal of weak demand or an imminent growth slowdown. The drop in inflation is likely due to supply-side improvements and favourable base effect rather than a broad-based economic slowdown.

Shriram General Insurance eyes Rs 4,500 crore premium, expects 24% growth in FY26: CEO Anil Kumar Aggarwal

CEO Aggarwal said while the company remains confident about meeting its growth target, it continues to grapple with systemic challenges such as the lack of access to motor insurance data, which has kept penetration levels stagnant at around 50%

Banking Central | Thali cools, but RBI’s inflation battle is far from over

For a country where inflation is measured first in tomatoes and onions and only later in spreadsheets, this counts as genuine relief.

M&A loans: RBI is opening the gates. Do Indian banks have the playbook?

Governor Malhotra says guardrails are in place and judgement should rest with banks. History suggests judgement, not regulation, will decide the outcome.

Fintech firm Slice Small Finance Bank turns profitable, reports Rs 7 cr net in H1 FY26

One of the key reasons behind the improving financials was the falling cost of funds, as Slice could now receive deposits from the public, which is cheaper than loans from other financial institutions

K V Kamath says India’s right to wait as AI hype plays out; backs strong valuations, buoyant IPO market, bank reforms

Speaking at the Global Leadership Summit, K.V. Kamath said that while the world is witnessing an intense wave of enthusiasm over AI, “a bit of the hype has to die down” before the true economic value of the technology becomes clear.

LIC’s GST impact under 1%, ITC burden not passed onto agents: CEO Doraiswamy

The insurer expects that exemptions on life insurance products will boost business volumes, support top-line growth, and provide opportunities to optimise expenses

India needs ‘big and world class’ banks, work on PSB consolidation has begun: FM Sitharaman

On October 15, Moneycontrol have reported that India's banking sector is headed for another round of public sector bank consolidation with the government working on a mega merger that could see smaller lenders being merged with larger banks.

Piramal Finance on track to 3% RoA, MD Jairam Sridharan says, as stock begins trading

The MD and CEO of Piramal Finance said the NBFC would start its new innings on the stock exchanges on a clean slate, and is all set to meet the 3 percent RoA target in the coming years.

India plans to retain cap on voting rights for large shareholders in banks: Report

The government is also seeking a majority investor in state-owned IDBI Bank, expecting to conclude that process by end of March 2026.

Distributors agreed to bear ITC as GST relief boosts affordability, volumes, Niva Bupa’s MD and CEO

Niva Bupa CEO Krishnan Ramachandran said that the distributors have agreed to bear the ITC as the recent GST relief is improving affordability and driving higher policy volumes.

Fusion Finance founder Devesh Sachdev steps down from board, exits all roles

Sachdev's resignation from the board, which came into effect on November 4, formally completes his exit from all executive and governance roles at the micro-finance lender

RBI’s huddle with dealers: Liquidity tightening or signalling risk control?

We have seen the system slip into meaningful deficit episodes this quarter

Rupee opens 13 paise up at 88.52 against dollar tracking gains in Asian currencies

The rupee is expected to move in the 88.40-88.90 range, depending on how the RBI takes the currency forward, experts say

November blues: Rupee likely to trade close to 89 amid trade uncertainty, strong dollar

On November 4, the RBI intervened in the NDF market to defend rupee from touching record low

SBI maintain 20% of GDP as asset portfolio, aims to grow to 25%, says Chairman CS Setty

Setty added that after several quarters of muted activity, corporate loan growth has started to pick up, buoyed by a strong pipeline and improving credit demand. Setty said that while there were sizeable prepayments in recent quarters partly due to the lender’s decision not to match aggressive pricing and partly because several corporates chose to repay loans using surplus cash the outlook has turned positive.

Yes Bank stake sale yielded 14% IRR, no compulsion to hold or sell remaining shares: SBI chairman CS Setty

According to Setty, SBI’s primary intent in participating in the reconstruction plan was not profit-making but supporting financial stability at a crucial time.

RBL Bank shares jump 2.5% today as Mahindra & Mahindra sells stake with 64% gain via block deal

Automobiles major Mahindra & Mahindra had invested Rs 417 crore in July 2023 to acquire a 3.5 percent stake in RBL Bank at Rs 197 per share. The current deal is expected to deliver a gain of roughly 64 percent on that investment.

Privatisation of banks unlikely to hurt financial inclusion drive, national interest: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Nirmala Sitharaman said the bank nationalisation done in 1969 has not yielded the desired result as far as financial inclusion was concerned

Life insurers' non-par products gain traction in rebalance, but HDFC Life bucks the trend

HDFC Life's non-par share declined sharply to 18 percent in H1FY26 from 32 percent a year ago, a deviation in an otherwise uniform industry tilt toward guaranteed-return products.

Shriram Life’s new business premium up 17 percent in H1FY26, renewal premium rise 43 percent

Kromhout called the government’s move to reduce GST on individual term insurance policies from 18 percent to zero a 'landmark decision' that would make pure protection products more affordable and expand industry penetration.

Tata Capital Housing’s Ajai Shukla likely frontrunner for PNB Housing CEO's role

Ajai Shukla has held multiple leadership roles across Tata Capital and its housing finance arm. An official announcement regarding the appointment is expected shortly, it is learnt.

Rupee appreciates most in over two weeks on likely RBI intervention in NDF market

The local currency has remained towards 88.70 in the last few weeks amid pressure from the Asian currencies.

Canara Bank rides the CASA turnaround; MSME and vehicle loans to drive H2 growth, says MD and CEO

Canara Bank MD and CEO also said the lender is preparing to capitalize on the opportunities in the M&A financing space.

MUFG in advanced talks with Shriram Finance for a 20% stake

MUFG likely to invest $3-4 billion in India’s largest vehicle financier; Japanese lender will infuse fresh capital into the lender and secure two board positions.

ACKO to ramp up EV-specific products, distribution channels as it begins Tesla linked insurance: CEO Animesh Das

CEO Animesh Das said the company plans to significantly scale up this share in the coming quarters, although refraining from providing any specific guidance

Banking Central | What does UPI surge mean for Indian payments system?

UPI’s future hinges on whether policymakers allow it to stand on viable economic legs

Rs 2,000 notes worth Rs 5,817 crore still in circulation: RBI

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had announced the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 denomination banknotes from circulation on May 19, 2023. Rs 2,000 banknotes continue to be legal tender.

Bank of Baroda eyes 10-11% corporate loan growth in H2FY26, says CEO Debadatta Chand

The bank is keeping a close watch on fluctuations in gold prices but does not expect any significant impact on its loan-to-value (LTV) ratios or portfolio performance in the near term, Chand said.

Bank of Baroda Q2 net profit falls 8% to Rs 4,809 crore, NII rises 3%

Bank of Baroda Q2 results: Asset quality improves

OPINION | Vault Matters: $7 billion, four banks and a new outlook to equity

Capital, equity, etc. are not concerns of RBI was the view that the central bank seemed to hold for a long time. The new regime and its thinking is proving this belief wrong, making for a welcome change 

Canara Bank may raise Rs 3,500 crore via AT1 bonds by November

On October 30, the lender has informed exchanges that ratings agency ICRA has assigned ‘AA+’ ratings with ‘Stable’ outlook for the Basel-III compliant Tier-1 bonds.

Supreme Court asks IRDAI, industry to explore policies to improve motor insurance coverage

The supreme court is expected to deliberate on possible enforcement mechanisms and policy reforms to address the large-scale non-compliance of motor insurance in India.

Why banks are finding borrowing via TREPS more attractive over RBI’s VRR auctions

Market participants have said that the narrowing rate differential between TREPS and RBI’s VRR auctions has made the former route a more attractive option.

Rupee opens 9 paise up at 88.61/USD on Asian cues

Asian currencies were mostly higher on Friday, with the offshore Chinese yuan at 7.11 to the U.S. dollar

Union Bank of India working with two external agencies for ECL norms implementation, says CFO

Further, the managing director and chief executive officer Asheesh Pandey said there is no communication from the government on the consolidation of the state-owned banks.

FOMC rate cut gives RBI MPC further room, but policy action seen hinging on growth-inflation outlook

US Federal Reserve’s by 25 bps rate cut has increased the scope for policy flexibility for emerging markets like India, however, economists believe the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will keep its focus on growth and inflation in framing the policy stance at the upcoming December monetary policy meeting.

RBL and Yes Bank: How India’s two largest banking sector deals happened

The Yes Bank-SMBC and RBL-Emirates NBD deals have opened doors for more such deals to happen in Indian banking ecosystem