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Banking & Bancassurance

Jan Dhan accounts exceed 430 mn in 7 yrs, total deposits over Rs 1.46 trn

This national mission was launched to ensure people have access to financial services, namely, banking, remittance, credit, insurance, pension in an affordable manner.

On the road ahead, the finance ministry said, eligible PMJDY account holders will be sought to be covered under the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY).

As on August 18, 2021, the number of total PMJDY accounts stood at 430.4 million. Of this, 55.47 per cent (23.87 crore) Jan-Dhan account holders are women and 66.69 per cent (28.70 crore) holders are in rural and semi-urban areas, the finance ministry said in a statement.

Out of total 430.4 million PMJDY accounts, 368.6 million or 85.6 per cent are operative, and the average deposit per account is Rs 3,398, as per the statement.

Increase in average deposit is another indication of increased usage of accounts and inculcation of saving habit among account holders, it said.

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China’s planned anti-sanctions law for Hong Kong unsettles financial sector

Under the planned law, if financial institutions in Hong Kong implement U.S. sanctions, they may be exposed to legal risk in Hong Kong for doing so, financial sector executives and lawyers said.

“Many foreign multinational companies are asking about the impact of the anti-foreign sanctions law, especially international banks and financial institutions,” said Shaun Wu, a Hong Kong-based partner at law firm Paul Hastings.

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FDI proposal for bank-promoted insurance firm to be vetted by RBI, Irdai: Govt notification

”Applications for foreign direct investment in private banks having joint venture or subsidiary in insurance sector may be addressed to the Reserve Bank for consideration in consultation with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), in order to ensure that the limit of foreign investment applicable for the insurance sector as specified in serial number F. 8.1 and F. 8.2 is not breached,” the notification said.

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FM to meet CEOs of public sector banks on Aug 25 to review financial performance

Interestingly, this would be the first physical review meeting since the outbreak of the pandemic in March last year. The meeting is expected to take stock of the banking sector, progress on restructuring the 2.0 scheme announced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), sources said, adding that banks may be nudged to push loan growth in productive sectors.

The revamped Rs 4.5 lakh crore Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) would also be reviewed during the meeting likely to be held in Mumbai, sources said.

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Global banks unwind India currency trades worth billions after RBI warning

Some lenders had racked up exposures of more than $1 billion each by using a regulatory loophole created in February to convert rupee deposits into dollars using a buy-sell swap — buying the greenback now while selling the same amount at a specified date in the future. They then used the proceeds to purchase U.S. government debt and profited from the arbitrage, paying around 3.5% on the local currency deposits and earning 4.9% on the 12-month yield on the currency pair.

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RBI to penalise banks for non-availability of cash in ATMs from Oct 1

In this connection, it said a review of downtime of ATMs due to cash-outs was undertaken and it was observed that ATM operations affected by cash-outs lead to non-availability of cash and cause avoidable inconvenience to the members of the public.

It has, therefore, been decided that the banks/ White Label ATM Operators (WLAOs) will strengthen their systems/ mechanisms to monitor the availability of cash in ATMs and ensure timely replenishment to avoid cash-outs, the central bank said.

”Any non-compliance in this regard shall be viewed seriously and shall attract monetary penalty as stipulated in the ‘Scheme of Penalty for non-replenishment of ATMs’,” the RBI said.

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Will RBI joining NGFS help in climate finance?

The 22nd Financial Stability Report (FSR22) of the RBI had, about the “climate-related risk” that the value of financial assets/liabilities could be affected either by continuation in climate change (physical risks), or by an adjustment towards a low-carbon economy (transition risks). The manifestation of physical risks could lead to a sharp fall in asset prices and increase in uncertainty, it said.

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