FAQ Page 1 - ആർബിഐ - Reserve Bank of India
FAQs on Master Directions on Priority Sector Lending Guidelines
J. PSLCs
Clarification: PSLCs may be construed in the nature of 'goods' in the course of inter-state trade or commerce, dealing in which has been notified as a permissible activity under section 6(1)(o) of BR Act vide Government of India Notification dated May 4, 2016. GST on PSLCs for the period July 01, 2017 to May 28, 2018 has to be paid by the seller bank on forward charge basis at the rate of 12%. With effect from May 28, 2018, GST has to be paid by the buyer bank under Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) at the rate of 18%. Further, IGST is payable on the supply of PSLC traded over e-kuber portal. If a bank which was liable to pay GST had already paid CGST/SGST or CGST/UGST, the bank is not required to pay IGST towards such supply. Further, as per the extant guidelines, no transaction charge/ fees is applicable on the participating banks payable to RBI for usage of the PSLC module on e-Kuber portal.
(The clarification given above is not a legal advice or opinion in the matter and it may not necessarily reflect the most current legal developments. The market participants should seek the advice of the tax experts/consultants/specialists before acting upon any of the information provided above).
Clarification: There are only four eligible categories of PSLCs i.e. PSLC General, PSLC Small and Marginal Farmer, PSLC Agriculture & PSLC Micro Enterprises.
Clarification: 'Export Credit' can form a part of underlying assets against the PSLC - General. However, any bank issuing PSLC-General against 'Export Credit' shall ensure that the underlying 'Export Credit' portfolio is also eligible for priority sector classification by domestic banks.
Clarification: Foreign banks with less than 20 branches are not allowed to buy PSLC General for achieving their 8% target of lending to sectors other than exports. However, such banks are allowed to buy PSLC Agriculture, PSLC Micro Enterprises and PSLC Small and Marginal Farmer for the same.
Clarification: The trade summary of PSLC market is available to the participants through the e-Kuber portal. Any new functionality will be notified to the participants via 'News & Announcements' section under e-Kuber portal.
Clarification: A bank can purchase PSLCs as per its requirements. Further, a bank is permitted to issue PSLCs upto 50 percent of previous year’s PSL achievement without having the underlying in its books. This is applicable category-wise. The net position of PSLCs (PSLC Buy – PSLC Sell) has to be considered while reporting the quarterly and annual priority sector returns. However, with regard to ascertaining the underlying assets, as on March 31st, the bank must have met the priority sector target by way of the sum of outstanding priority sector portfolio and net of PSLCs issued and purchased.
Clarification: The misclassifications, if any, will have to be reduced from the achievement of PSLC seller bank only. There will be no counterparty risk for the PSLC buyer, even if, the underlying asset of the traded PSLC gets misclassified.
Clarification: The premium will be completely market determined. No floor/ ceiling has been prescribed by RBI in this regard.
Clarification: There will be real time settlement of the matched premium and accordingly respective current accounts of the participating banks with RBI will be debited/ credited to the extent of matched premium
Clarification: The order matching will be done on anonymous basis through the portal and the buyer/ seller cannot select the counterparty. Partial matching will happen depending on the matching of premium and availability of category wise PSLC lots for sale and purchase.
Clarification: The normal trading hours shall be from 10 AM to 4:30 PM. The PSLC market operates on all days except Saturdays, Sundays, holidays declared under The Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 by the Government of Maharashtra. and such holidays as RBI may declare from time to time.
Clarification: The nature of PSLC trading has been kept anonymous to maintain most efficient price discovery. There is no provision for settling deals on bilateral basis and reporting on the portal subsequently. RBI has the discretion to cancel any deals which is settled at substantially higher/ lower premiums as compared to the prevailing rates on the portal.
External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) and Trade Credits
D. RECOGNISED LENDERS/ INVESTORS
Retail Direct Scheme
Account opening related queries
Biennial survey on Foreign Collaboration in Indian Industry (FCS)
Details of survey launch
Ans.: In case the reporting entity does not receive the soft-form of the survey schedule, they may download the same from RBI website www.rbi.org.in---> ‘Regulatory Reporting’-→ ‘List of Returns’-→ ‘FCS – Survey Schedule’ or Forms→Survey or send a request to the email: fcsquery@rbi.org.in.
Targeted Long Term Repo Operations (TLTROs)
FAQs pertaining to TLTRO 2.0
Ans: In order to provide banks flexibility in investment, this condition will not be applicable for funds availed under TLTRO 2.0.
Housing Loans
Ensure that the documents being provided to you are not colour photocopies. Check the internet for other modus operandi to fraud and ensure clear title to the asset. Seek advice only from authentic sources such as your bank.
Get the no encumbrance certificate to find the true title holder and if it is mortgaged to any financier. Obtain all tax papers to ensure that all documents are up to date.
Indian Currency
B) Banknotes
Not necessarily. In terms of Section 24 of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, bank notes shall be of the denominational values of two rupees, five rupees, ten rupees, twenty rupees, fifty rupees, one hundred rupees, five hundred rupees, one thousand rupees, five thousand rupees and ten thousand rupees or of such other denominational values, not exceeding ten thousand rupees, as the Central Government may, on the recommendation of the Central Board, specify in this behalf.
Government Securities Market in India – A Primer
11.1 For every transaction entered into by the trading desk, a deal slip should be generated which should contain data relating to nature of the deal, name of the counter-party, whether it is a direct deal or through a broker (if it is through a broker, name of the broker), details of security, amount, price, contract date and time and settlement date. The deal slips should be serially numbered and verified separately to ensure that each deal slip has been properly accounted for. Once the deal is concluded, the deal slip should be immediately passed on to the back office (it should be separate and distinct from the front office) for recording and processing. For each deal, there must be a system of issue of confirmation to the counter-party. The timely receipt of requisite written confirmation from the counter-party, which must include all essential details of the contract, should be monitored by the back office. The need for counterparty confirmation of deals matched on NDS-OM will not arise, as NDS-OM is an anonymous automated order matching system. In case of trades finalized in the OTC market and reported on NDS-OM reported segment, both the buying and selling counter parties report the trade particulars separately on the reporting platform which should match for the trade to be settled.
11.2 Once a deal has been concluded through a broker, there should not be any substitution of the counterparty by the broker. Similarly, the security sold / purchased in a deal should not be substituted by another security under any circumstances.
11.3 On the basis of vouchers passed by the back office (which should be done after verification of actual contract notes received from the broker / counter party and confirmation of the deal by the counter party), the books of account should be independently prepared.
All you wanted to know about NBFCs
B. Entities Regulated by RBI and applicable regulations
Foreign Investment in India
Answer: Please refer to the ‘Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Processing FDI Proposals’ issued by Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion, Government of India → http://fifp.gov.in/Forms/SOP.pdf
Domestic Deposits
I. Domestic Deposits
Annual Return on Foreign Liabilities and Assets (FLA) under FEMA 1999
Eligible entities and requirements to submit the FLA return
Ans: If an entity has not ‘received any fresh FDI and/or ODI (overseas direct investment)’ in the latest FY but has outstanding FDI and/or ODI as at end-March of that financial year, then it is required to submit their outstanding position as on March 31 in the FLA return every year by July 15.
Remittances (Money Transfer Service Scheme (MTSS) and Rupee Drawing Arrangement (RDA))
Money Transfer Service Scheme (MTSS)
Core Investment Companies
Core Investment Companies (CICs)
Ans: No, only investments in companies registered under Section 3 of the Companies Act 1956 would be regarded as investments in Group companies for the purpose of calculating 90% investment in Group companies. Moreover, CICs are prohibited from contributing capital to any partnership firm or to be partners in partnership firms including Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) or any association of person similar in nature to partnership firms.
FAQs on Non-Banking Financial Companies
Exemptions to the companies not accepting public deposits
Business restrictions imposed on Paytm Payments Bank Limited vide Press Releases dated January 31 and February 16, 2024
Paytm Payments Bank Wallet
Coordinated Portfolio Investment Survey – India
What to report under CPIS?
Ans: The survey collects details of portfolio investment assets of domestic residents made in securities issued by unrelated non-residents i.e., securities issued by unrelated non-residents and owned by residents.
FAQs on Master Directions on Priority Sector Lending Guidelines
K. On-lending under Priority Sector
Clarification: In the case of bank’s lending to NBFCs / MFIs / HFCs for on-lending, only that portion of the portfolio should be reckoned for PSL classification that has been disbursed by the NBFC / MFI / HFC to the ultimate borrower/s as on the reporting date. The reckoning of residual portfolio, if any, can be done on subsequent reporting dates, based on the disbursement of eligible loans and reported by the NBFC / MFI / HFC to the bank.
Clarification: The Master Directions on Priority Sector Lending, 2020 under para 21, 22, 23 allows banks to classify as PSL its lending to NBFCs including HFCs and NBFC-MFIs and other MFIs (Societies, Trusts etc.) which are members of RBI recognised SRO for the sector for on-lending to eligible priority sectors. Banks may adopt a uniform methodology for on-lending as follows:
a) Classification under PSL:
• The banks can classify on-lending to NBFC in the respective categories of PSL. The classification will be allowed only when the NBFC has disbursed the Priority Sector Loans to the ultimate beneficiary after receiving the funds from the bank.
• The NBFCs must provide a CA certificate to the banks stating that the individual loans of the portfolio, against which on-lending benefit is being claimed, are not being used to claim benefit from any other bank(s). Also, NBFC must put in place a suitable process to flag such loan(s) in their systems to enable its internal/statutory auditors as well as RBI supervisors to verify the same.
b) Information sharing:
• The banks may devise internal control mechanisms to ensure that the portfolio under on-lending is PSL compliant and adheres to co-terminus clause. The same should be made available to RBI supervisor/s as and when required. The following information/record should be collected by the bank from the EI:
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Name of the beneficiary, Amount sanctioned, Loan amount outstanding, Loan tenure, disbursement date, category of PSL.
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A statement to the effect that the portfolio is PSL compliant must be certified by a CA and shared by the EI with the bank on a quarterly basis in line with the PSL reporting by the bank to RBI. With respect to adherence to the co-terminus clause, the bank should ensure the same as on March 31 each year.
c) Adherence to co-terminus condition:
• The banks availing benefit of on-lending for PS assets must adhere to the condition that the tenure of the loan under on-lending to an EI is broadly co-terminus with the tenure of PS assets created by the EI.
• In view of the operational difficulties of exactly matching the co-terminus duration, the banks are allowed a variance of 3 months from the portfolio duration. An illustration for calculating adherence to the co-terminus duration is given below:
Sr. No. | Loan outstanding (A) | 31st March of current FY (B) | Loan end date (C) | Loan period (days) (D= C-B) | Weighted average loan outstanding days (E=A*D) |
1 | 50000 | 31-03-21 | 01-02-23 | 672 | 33600000 |
2 | 80000 | 31-03-21 | 01-05-24 | 1127 | 90160000 |
3 | 100000 | 31-03-21 | 11-08-23 | 863 | 86300000 |
4 | 300000 | 31-03-21 | 16-10-22 | 564 | 169200000 |
5 | 400000 | 31-03-21 | 23-11-22 | 602 | 240800000 |
Total | 930000 | 620060000 | |||
Weighted maturity of portfolio in days (F=(sum of E)/(sum of A) | 666.73 | ||||
In months (F/30) | 22.22 | ||||
In years (F/365) | 1.83 |
In the above illustration, the residual maturity of bank loan to NBFC should be around 22.22 months. Banks are expected to calculate the weighted average residual maturity of portfolio ever year as on March 31 and ensure that residual maturity of bank loan to NBFC matches with the weighted average residual maturity of on-lending portfolio within the tolerance limit of +-3 months.
d) Treatment of pre-payment, foreclosure loans:
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The PS assets created by the entity may undergo pre-payment or foreclosure thereby changing the ‘weighted maturity’ of the portfolio.
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As the banks are required to calculate ‘weighted maturity’ at the end of FY, the loan outstanding in the event of pre-payment/foreclosure will also change accordingly.
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The NBFC may add PS assets to the on-lending portfolio. However, it must meet conditions mentioned above such as disbursements for the PS asset by the eligible entity must be on/after receipt of funds from the bank. The addition of PS assets to the portfolio pool can also be done in case of pre-payment/foreclosure of other PS assets in the pool to ensure adherence to the co-terminus clause.
Clarification: Bank lending to NBFCs (other than MFIs) and HFCs are subjected to a cap of 5% of average PSL achievement of the four quarters of the previous financial year. In case of a new bank the cap shall be applicable on an on-going basis during its first year of operations. The prescribed cap is not applicable for bank lending to registered NBFC-MFIs and other MFIs (Societies, Trusts, etc.) which are members of RBI recognised ‘Self-Regulatory Organisation’ of the sector. Bank lending to such MFIs can be classified under different categories of PSL in accordance with conditions specified in our Master Directions FIDD.CO.Plan.BC.5/04.09.01/2020-21 dated September 04, 2020 and updated from time to time.
Biennial survey on Foreign Collaboration in Indian Industry (FCS)
Some important definitions and concepts
Ans.: Indian company which has entered into an agreement with a foreign entity in terms of technology transfer, know-how transfer, use of patent, brand name etc, then such type of agreement are treated as Foreign Technical Collaborations (FTC).
Retail Direct Scheme
Account opening related queries
Targeted Long Term Repo Operations (TLTROs)
FAQs pertaining to TLTRO 2.0
Ans: This condition applies only to the fourth TLTRO conducted on April 17, 2020. It does not apply to the TLTROs conducted before April 17, 2020. It also does not apply to TLTRO 2.0.
Housing Loans
Give yourself comfortable time. Do not hurry your purchase or loan in any case. Shopping around for a home loan will help you to get the best financing deal. Shopping, comparing, seeking clarification and negotiating with banks may save you thousands of rupees.
a) Obtain information from several banks
Home loans are available from mainly two types of lenders--commercial banks and housing finance companies. Different lenders may quote you different rates of interest and other terms and conditions, so you should contact several lenders to make sure you’re getting the best value for money.
Find out how much of a down payment you are required to pay, and find out all the costs involved in the loan (including processing fees, administrative charges and prepayment charges levied by banks). Knowing just the amount of the EMI or the interest rate is not good enough. Similarly, ask for information on loan amount, loan term, and type of loan (fixed or floating) so that you can compare the information and take an informed decision.
The following is some important information that you will require.
i) Rates
Ask your lender about its current home loan interest rates and whether the rate is fixed or floating. Remember that when interest rates in the economy go up so does the floating rates and hence the monthly re-payment.
If the rate quoted is a floating rate, ask how your rate and loan payment will vary, including the extent to which your loan payment will be reduced when rates go down by a certain percentage. Ask your lender to what index your floating home loan is referenced / linked and the periodicity of updation of that index. Also ask your bank whether the index is internal or external and how and where it is published.
Ask about the loan’s annual percentage rates (APR). The APR takes into account not only the interest rate but also fees and certain other charges that you may be required to pay, expressed as a yearly rate. Banks are obliged to reveal the APR if requested for by the customer.
ii) Reset Clause
Check the reset clause, especially in the case of fixed interest rate loan as the rates will not be fixed throughout the tenure of the loan.
iii) Spread/Mark up
Check if the margin in the case of the floating rate is fixed or variable. The rate of interest you have to pay will vary accordingly.
iv) Fees
A home loan often requires payment of various fees, such as loan origination or processing charges, administrative charges, documentation, late payment, changing the loan tenure, switching to different loan package during the loan tenure, restructuring of loan, changing from fixed to floating interest rate loan and vice versa, legal fee, technical inspection fee, recurring annual service fee, document retrieval charges and pre-payment charges, if you want to prepay the loan. Every lender should be able to give you an estimate of its fees. Many of these fees are negotiable / can be waived also.
Ask what each fee includes. Sometimes several components are lumped into one fee. Ask for an explanation of any fee you do not understand. Also, remember that most of these fees are perhaps negotiable! Do negotiate with your bank before agreeing to a particular fee. See how the all inclusive rate compares with the all inclusive rates offered by other banks. While planning your finances, don't forget to include the costs of stamp duty and registration.
v) Down Payments / Margin
Some lenders require 20/30 percent of the home’s purchase price as a down payment from you. However, many lenders also offer loans that require less than 20/30 percent down payment, sometimes as little as 5 percent .Ask about the lender’s requirements for a down payment and also negotiate with him to reduce the down payments.
b) Obtain the best deal
Once you know what each bank has to offer in terms of rates, fees and down payments, negotiate for the best deal. Ask the lender to write down all the costs associated with the loan. Then ask if the bank will waive or reduce one or more of its fees or agree to a lower rate. Do make sure that the bank is not agreeing to lower one fee while raising another or to lower the rate while raising the fees. Ask for clarification in case you do not understand any particular term. All banks are obliged to explain the most important terms and conditions of the home loan in detail.
Once you are satisfied with the terms you have negotiated, please do obtain a written offer letter from the lender and keep a copy with you. Read the offer letter carefully before signing.
Indian Currency
B) Banknotes
The highest denomination note ever printed by the Reserve Bank of India was the ₹10000 note in 1938 which was demonetized in January 1946. The ₹10000 was again introduced in 1954. These notes were demonetized in 1978.
Government Securities Market in India – A Primer
The following steps should be followed in purchase of a security:
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Which security to invest in – Typically this involves deciding on the maturity and coupon. Maturity is important because this determines the extent of risk an investor like an UCB is exposed to – normally higher the maturity, higher the interest rate risk or market risk. If the investment is largely to meet statutory requirements, it may be advisable to avoid taking undue market risk and buy securities with shorter maturity. Within the shorter maturity range (say 5-10 years), it would be safer to buy securities which are liquid, that is, securities which trade in relatively larger volumes in the market. The information about such securities can be obtained from the website of the CCIL (http://www.ccilindia.com/OMMWCG.aspx), which gives real-time secondary market trade data on NDS-OM. Pricing is more transparent in liquid securities, thereby reducing the chances of being misled/misinformed. The coupon rate of the security is equally important for the investor as it affects the total return from the security. In order to determine which security to buy, the investor must look at the Yield to Maturity (YTM) of a security (please refer to Box III under para 24.4 for a detailed discussion on YTM). Thus, once the maturity and yield (YTM) is decided, the UCB may select a security by looking at the price/yield information of securities traded on NDS-OM or by negotiating with bank or PD or broker.
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Where and Whom to buy from- In terms of transparent pricing, the NDS-OM is the safest because it is a live and anonymous platform where the trades are disseminated as they are struck and where counterparties to the trades are not revealed. In case, the trades are conducted on the telephone market, it would be safe to trade directly with a bank or a PD. In case one uses a broker, care must be exercised to ensure that the broker is registered on NSE or BSE or OTC Exchange of India. Normally, the active debt market brokers may not be interested in deal sizes which are smaller than the market lot (usually ₹ 5 cr). So it is better to deal directly with bank / PD or on NDS-OM, which also has a screen for odd-lots (i.e. less than ₹ 5 cr). Wherever a broker is used, the settlement should not happen through the broker. Trades should not be directly executed with any counterparties other than a bank, PD or a financial institution, to minimize the risk of getting adverse prices.
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How to ensure correct pricing – Since investors like UCBs have very small requirements, they may get a quote/price, which is worse than the price for standard market lots. To be sure of prices, only liquid securities may be chosen for purchase. A safer alternative for investors with small requirements is to buy under the primary auctions conducted by RBI through the non-competitive route. Since there are bond auctions almost every week, purchases can be considered to coincide with the auctions. Please see question 14 for details on ascertaining the prices of the G-Secs.
All you wanted to know about NBFCs
B. Entities Regulated by RBI and applicable regulations
Foreign Investment in India
Domestic Deposits
I. Domestic Deposits
Annual Return on Foreign Liabilities and Assets (FLA) under FEMA 1999
Eligible entities and requirements to submit the FLA return
Ans: If the Partnership firms, Branches or Trustees have any outward FDI outstanding as on end-March of the latest FY, then they are required to file the FLA return.
External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) and Trade Credits
E. AVERAGE MATURITY PERIOD
You may refer to /documents/87730/39016390/12EC160712_A6.pdf for illustration purposes.
Remittances (Money Transfer Service Scheme (MTSS) and Rupee Drawing Arrangement (RDA))
Money Transfer Service Scheme (MTSS)
Core Investment Companies
Core Investment Companies (CICs)
Ans: No, they are only exempt from norms regarding submission of Statutory Auditor Certificate regarding continuance of business as NBFC, capital adequacy and concentration of credit / investments norms.
FAQs on Non-Banking Financial Companies
Exemptions to the companies not accepting public deposits
Business restrictions imposed on Paytm Payments Bank Limited vide Press Releases dated January 31 and February 16, 2024
Paytm Payments Bank Wallet
Coordinated Portfolio Investment Survey – India
What to report under CPIS?
Ans: The portfolio investment assets are required to be reported on marked to market basis as at the end of the reference period, with the breakups into type of securities viz., equity securities, short-term debt securities (with and original maturity of up to one year) and long-term debt securities (with an original maturity of more than a year) and country of residence of issuer.
FAQs on Master Directions on Priority Sector Lending Guidelines
L. Co-lending by Banks & NBFCs
Clarification: While the guidelines allow sharing of risks and rewards between the bank and the NBFC for ensuring appropriate alignment of respective business objectives, the priority sector assets on the bank’s books should at all times be without recourse to the NBFC.
Clarification: Only if the bank can exercise its discretion regarding taking into its books the loans originated by NBFC as per the Agreement, the arrangement will be akin to a direct assignment transaction. If the Agreement entails a prior, irrevocable commitment on the part of the bank to take into its books its share of the individual loans as originated by the NBFC, it shall not be akin to direct assignment transaction.
Clarification: Both entities, the bank & the NBFC shall be guided by the bilateral Master Agreement entered by them for implementing the Co-lending Model (CLM). The agreement may state any cap on the number and amount of loans that can be originated by the NBFC under the Co-lending model.