RBI deputy suggests corp debt won't get SLR status

The Reserve Bank of India's Deputy Governor H.R. Khan on Tuesday dismissed talk of corporate bonds in India getting statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) status.

"SLR is made for securities which are issued in market borrowing," Khan said on the sidelines of a conference, adding "nobody is serious" in suggesting that corporate bonds be used to meet SLR requirements. SLR refers to the minimum bond investments that banks must hold and is currently at 23 percent of banks' deposits. The Economic Times had reported on Tuesday the finance ministry was in talks with the RBI and the corporate affairs ministry to give SLR status to corporate bonds.