Bankers welcome revision of bulk deposit limit, RBI’s digital push

The central bank has also formed a committee to examine various aspects of setting up the platform.

The banking community has welcomed the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) move to revise bulk deposit limits, saying it will help banks towards mobilisation of granular retail deposits.

“Upward revision in bulk deposit threshold from Rs 2 crore to Rs 3 crore and above is a welcome and pragmatic step and will provide more room to banks for mobilisation of granular retail deposits,” AU Small Finance Bank managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) Sanjay Agarwal said on June 7.

The RBI’s push towards more digital measures would help the banking sector. “RBI’s decision on e-mandates for recurring payments to be extended to fastags, introduction of auto replenishment of UPI-like wallet, and establishment of a digital payments intelligence platform, is all set to promote a resilient banking sector,” said Ajay Kumar Srivastava, Managing Director & CEO, Indian Overseas Bank.

In his policy statement, RBI governor Shaktikanta Das said the central bank plans to set up a digital payments platform. “It is proposed to establish a Digital Payments Intelligence Platform for network level intelligence and real-time data sharing across the digital payments’ ecosystem,” Das said. The central bank has also formed a committee to examine various aspects of setting up the platform.

It also proposed to bring UPI Lite within the ambit of the e-mandate framework by introducing an auto-replenishment facility for loading mobile payment wallets if the balance goes below thresholds set by the users. For instance, if a user has set a floor of Rs 500 on her UPI Lite wallet and the balance goes below Rs 500, the wallet will automatically be loaded with Rs 2,000, the maximum limit for UPI Lite wallet.

The RBI also changed the limit of bulk deposits for scheduled commercial banks and small finance banks (SFB) to Rs 3 crore.

“On a review of bulk deposit limits for banks, it is proposed to revise the definition of bulk deposits as single-rupee term deposit of Rs 3 crore and above for scheduled commercial banks and SFBs, excluding regional rural banks,” Das said.

On June 7, the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held the repo rate steady at 6.5 percent, with  the central bank maintaining its withdrawal of accommodation stance.

"The pattern of world crisis continues, but India is seeing positive growth. But we need to stay vigilant against new challenges," Das said.