Bank of Baroda also waives minimum balance charges amid deposits chase
With this, the bank joined Canara Bank, State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, and Indian Bank in waiving the minimum balance requirement. "With this, customers will not incur any charges for any shortfall in the Monthly Average Balance in their Savings Accounts. The waiver is not applicable on Premium Savings Account schemes," Bank of Baroda said in a statement.
Experts suggest the move is likely to be part of lenders' strategy to attract liabilities as deposit growth remains a challenge for the banking industry. "Waiving penal charges on non-maintenance of minimum balance is an indirect message from banks to customers to keep some money with them," said Saurabh Bhalerao Associate Director - BFSI Research, CARE Ratings. "Bank deposit is no longer the go-to option for people to save their money. People are now increasingly putting money in other financial products like mutual funds and even direct investment into stocks. With falling rates on deposits, banks may not find it easy to grow their deposit book. Share of CASA (current and savings account) has come down," he added.Canara Bank, which was the first bank to announce waiver of charges, hoped that the move will encourage customers to shift funds into term or recurring deposits in the long term. "Perhaps if we don't do this, we will lose deposits," bank's executive director S K Majumdar told ET last month.
"This creates a feel good for the customer. At a time when the industry is facing a challenge of mobilising deposits, especially because capital markets are doing well, this gives customers an alternative," he added.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
5 hours ago
- Business Standard
Three nationalisations: Lessons from govt's approach to SBI, LIC, Air India
A common factor uniting the three entities is that they all belonged to the services sector A K Bhattacharya New Delhi Listen to This Article About seven decades ago, the Indian government under Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru nationalised three major entities. One of them — State Bank of India (SBI) — is celebrating the 70th anniversary of its reincarnation this month. The second — Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) — will mark 70 years of nationalisation in 2026. And the third should have celebrated its 70th anniversary of nationalisation two years ago, but could not do so as it was privatised just a year before turning 70 as a nationalised outfit. This was Air India. The trajectory of these three enterprises that embarked on their individual
NDTV
9 hours ago
- NDTV
These Banks Have Removed Minimum Balance Requirement: Check List
Giving relief to customers, some of the major publicly listed banks in India have removed the compulsory practice of keeping Average Monthly Balance (AMB) in the savings accounts. Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, Indian Bank and Canara Bank are some of the big banks to have removed the minimum balance criteria on the majority of their savings accounts. What is the Average Monthly Balance (AMB)? The Average Monthly Balance (AMB) is the average balance that individuals are required to maintain in their savings or current account throughout a calendar month. At the close of each month, the AMB is calculated by the bank, and any inability to uphold this required average balance leads to the imposition of penalties. The penalty varies based on the type of savings account. Here are the banks to have removed the AMB requirement: Bank of Baroda Bank of Baroda waived charges on non-maintenance of minimum balance in all standard savings accounts starting July 1, 2025. The customers will not incur any charges if they are short of the AMB. However, the waiver does not apply to Premium Savings Account schemes. State Bank of India State Bank of India was the first to act in this direction, waiving minimum balance requirements in 2020. SBI Chairman CS Setty recently told NDTV Profit that the policy has helped first-time account holders. Canara Bank Canara Bank waived the average monthly balance requirement in May 2025 for all types of savings bank accounts, including regular savings accounts, salary accounts and NRI savings accounts. Indian Bank Starting July 7, 2025, Indian Bank has waived the minimum balance criteria and announced a complete waiver of minimum balance across all savings bank accounts. Punjab National Bank The Punjab National Bank (PNB) has announced that it will no longer levy penalties for not maintaining the minimum average balance in savings accounts, in an attempt to promote financial inclusion and make banking more accessible. "This customer-first initiative, effective from July 1, 2025, is particularly aimed at supporting priority segments such as women, farmers and low-income households, ensuring easier and more inclusive access to banking services without the stress of balance maintenance penalties," the bank said in a press release. Bank of India Bank of India has waived off minimum-balance penalties on savings accounts. These changes are aimed at aligning with market dynamics, enhancing financial flexibility, and delivering greater value to customers across segments.
India Gazette
11 hours ago
- India Gazette
No major sell-off in Dollar assets expected despite global tariff tensions: Experts
By Nikhil Dedha New Delhi [India], July 8 (ANI): As global trade tensions rise with the return of high tariffs under US President Donald Trump's policy, questions are being raised on whether countries affected by these tariffs will sell off their dollar-denominated assets to manage the financial burden. However, experts with whom ANI spoke believe such a move is unlikely and that the US dollar will continue to hold its ground. Banking and market expert Ajay Bagga told ANI that there is no direct link between tariffs and a large-scale sell-off of dollar assets. 'No such direct correlation is there. The de-dollarisation move is still very tepid. So we don't anticipate that. However, one of Trump's objectives is to weaken the US dollar. The huge debt, the huge interest payout on this debt, the continued high fiscal deficit and the anticipated Fed rate cuts will all weaken the US dollar,' Bagga said. He added that while gold might replace the US dollar to a limited extent in global reserves, it is unlikely to be a major reason for a weaker dollar. Sonal Badhan, Economics Specialist at Bank of Baroda, also echoed similar views. Speaking to ANI, she said, 'It is unlikely that there will a major sell-off in dollar-denominated assets. Dollar is likely to hold ground instead as uncertainty around tariffs further increases the possibility of delayed Fed rate cuts.' She also pointed out that the higher tariffs on Japan and their impact on its exports could reduce demand for the Japanese yen, which is seen as an alternate safe haven currency. 'Fluidity of the new deadline and the possibility of negotiation with major trading partners like the EU and India may help ease some trade-related concerns, which in turn will lead to improvement in risk sentiment and dollar may ease,' Badhan added. However, currency expert KN Dey shared a more balanced view with ANI. 'The US dollar is currently under pressure from both sides. On one hand, it is weak due to concerns about the US economy's growth and the risk of rising inflation. This uncertainty has kept the dollar on the back foot,' he said. 'However, there's also a possibility of the dollar strengthening in the coming months. That's because countries that trade with the US might let their own currencies weaken to make their exports more competitive in the American market. For example, a stronger euro may not help the European economy, as it makes their exports more expensive.' Experts agree that while the dollar may remain under pressure in the short term, any significant fall is unlikely as global market dynamics continue to support its role as a primary reserve currency. (ANI)
