Recent 6 months news in Banking

One Mobikwik Systems Ltd, the parent company of Mobikwik, has received in-principle approval from the RBI for a Payment Aggregator-Physical (PA-P) licence. This licence will enable the firm to facilitate offline merchant payments across India.

RBI has issued final amendment directions for Urban Co-operative Banks (UCBs) and Rural Co-operative Banks (RCBs), mandating a 3-year cooling-off period for directors who have completed a continuous tenure of 10 years on the board.

RBI has also established an 8-member expert panel under the Quantum Secure and Adaptive Financial Ecosystem (Q-SAFE) initiative to evaluate the risks posed to the financial system by the adoption of quantum technology. The panel is led by Anil Prabhakar, a professor at the IIT Madras, who serves as the convener.

Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has announced two new joint life insurance savings plans named ‘LIC’s New Jeevan Sathi Single Premium’ and ‘LIC’s New Jeevan Sathi Limited Premium’.

These plans, designed for couples, will be available from June 2026. They offer joint life financial protection, guaranteed returns, fixed benefits, and a premium waiver on the first death, along with loan facilities and flexible payout options.

The RBI has approved leadership updates for two financial institutions. Sandeep Bakhshi has been re-appointed as the MD & CEO of ICICI Bank for a 2-year term, effective until October 3, 2028.

Additionally, Ketan Merchant has been granted a 3-month interim leadership extension at Fino Payments Bank.

The RBI has imposed a penalty of ₹10.1 lakh on City Union Bank for levying loan-related charges on priority sector agriculture advances up to ₹25,000 and for failing to report Self Help Group (SHG) member-level data to credit information companies.

Mintifi Finserve Pvt Ltd was fined ₹3.1 lakh for failure to upload certain Know Your Customer (KYC) records, and Newa Investments Pvt Ltd was fined ₹2.7 lakh for appointing directors without obtaining prior approval from the regulator.

Jumpp, operated by the Finvasia Group, has received Corporate Agency and Insurance Self Network Platform (ISNP) licences from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).

These licences enable Jumpp to distribute insurance products digitally through its AI-powered platform. The platform has also partnered with YES Bank to provide banking and Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) services.

The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has acquired 26.26 crore equity shares, representing a 2.901% stake, in the Central Bank of India (CBI) through open market purchases. This transaction has increased the total shareholding of LIC in the bank from 3.16% to 6.06%.

The Department of Financial Services (DFS) under the Ministry of Finance has launched the ‘Common Landing Portal for Unclaimed Financial Assets’.

Developed in collaboration with the Public Sector Bank (PSB) Alliance, this unified platform allows users to search for unclaimed bank deposits, insurance claims, shares, dividends, and mutual funds across the financial ecosystem.

The RBI has approved a record surplus transfer of ₹2.87 lakh crore to the Government of India (GoI) for FY26. This is higher than the previous year transfer of ₹2.69 lakh crore.

As of March 2026, the balance sheet of the RBI expanded by 20.61% to reach ₹91.97 lakh crore. It is to be noted that under the revised Economic Capital Framework (ECF), the RBI is required to maintain a Contingent Risk Buffer (CRB) within a range of 4.5% to 7.5% of the balance sheet size.

Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has launched a series of Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI)-backed strategic web portals and initiatives during its 37th foundation day celebrations in Mumbai.

The initiatives include the “SIDBI-RRB Co-Lending Platform” to facilitate collaborations between SIDBI and Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) to enhance credit flow to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in semi-urban and rural areas.

The “Modernization of Rural Enterprises” (MoRE) Programme was also launched to support 10,000 rural micro and artisan units through cluster-based interventions over the next 3 years. Additionally, the “Micro Credit Card Scheme” for MSMEs allows Udyam-registered micro enterprises to access credit of up to ₹5 lakh with a 75% guarantee coverage and without the requirement of mandatory primary security.

ZikZuk Technologies Pvt Ltd has received final authorization from the RBI to operate as a Prepaid Payment Instrument (PPI) issuer under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act (PSSA), 2007.

The National Commodities and Derivatives Exchange Ltd (NCDEX) has launched the first exchange-traded weather derivatives contract in India, named “RAINMUMBAI”, marking the entry of the country into a regulated weather-risk trading market.

Scheduled for implementation in June 2026, the contract is designed to hedge the financial exposure of rainfall extremes and variability in Mumbai. It was developed in collaboration with the IIT Bombay and is based on official rainfall data from the India Meteorological Department. The contract features a tick size of 1 millimeter (mm) with a lot multiplier of ₹50 per mm and a maximum order size of 50 lots.

The RBI has cancelled the licence of Maharashtra-based Yashwant Co-operative Bank Ltd (UCB) with immediate effect, citing inadequate capital, poor financial health, and regulatory violations.

Following the liquidation process, eligible depositors of the UCB will be entitled to receive a deposit insurance claim of up to ₹5 lakh from the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).

The RBI has imposed regulatory restrictions on the Uttar Pradesh-based Nagar Sahakari Bank Ltd due to deteriorating financial conditions and supervisory concerns. Under these restrictions, a withdrawal cap of ₹10,000 per depositor has been placed on all savings, current, and other accounts for 6 months.

Skydo has secured in-principle approval to operate as a Payment Service Provider (PSP) within the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

The RBI has issued final amendment directions to revise the regulatory framework governing the Investment Fluctuation Reserve (IFR) for banks and regulated entities. Under the revised norms, the mandatory requirement to maintain the IFR will be discontinued with effect from May 18, 2026.

It is to be noted that the IFR is a reserve created by banks from their profits to absorb losses arising from Mark-to-Market (MTM) valuation changes in investments, particularly government securities.

The Ministry of Finance has approved a proposal by the UAE-based Emirates NBD to acquire a 49%–74% stake in RBL Bank. The transaction is valued at $3 billion (₹26,850 crore) and will be executed through a preferential allotment and a mandatory open offer. This is one of the largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) transactions in the banking and financial services sector of India.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has signed an MoU with DBS Bank to launch the first sustainability-linked dealer financing scheme in the automotive sector in India. Under this scheme, authorized dealers of Mahindra will receive preferential interest rates on vehicle loans, linked to their environmental performance.

IDFC FIRST Bank has launched a ‘Fixed Deposits (FD)-backed Business Multiplier Metal Credit Card’ in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The card is designed for founders, entrepreneurs, startups, and business owners. Key features include assured credit limits linked to FDs, zero forex markup, and business expense management capabilities.

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma inaugurated India’s first AI-powered ‘phygital’ banking branch of Slice Small Finance Bank (Slice SFB) in Guwahati, Assam. The ‘phygital’ model integrates physical banking infrastructure with digital technologies to provide seamless and efficient financial services.