'Banks free to decide on minimum balance for savings'

Says RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra; he was in Mehsana's Gozaria village to attend 'Financial Inclusion Saturation Drive'

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Reserve Bank of India Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Monday said banks are free to decide the minimum balance for savings accounts and that it does not fall under the regulatory domain of the RBI.

He was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a function on 'Financial Inclusion Saturation Drive' organized at Gozaria village panchayat in Mehsana district.

Asked about a private bank increasing the minimum balance required for savings accounts, Malhotra said, "The RBI has left it to individual banks to decide on what minimum balance they want to set. Some banks have kept it at Rs 10,000, some have kept Rs 2,000 and some have exempted (customers). It is not in the regulatory domain (of RBI)."