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IN BRIEF
RBI asks NBFCs to stick to
loan payout limit of ~20K
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
on Wednesday warned some
non-bank lenders against
disbursing cash loans in excess
of the permissible limit of
~20,000, according to sources
and a letter seen by Reuters, a
move that is likely to stop large
cash payouts to
those borrowing
against gold.
The RBI’s
advisory comes
within weeks of
regulatory action
against IIFL
Finance, country’s
second-largest
gold loan player, for violation of
cash disbursal and other norms.
Retail credit in India has
been growing at a rapid clip,
with loans against gold rising
threefold over the last four
years. A significant portion of
gold loans are being disbursed
in cash, at least a dozen sources
told Reuters.
India prohibits lenders from
handing out cash loans in
excess of ~20,000 to customers,
as per income tax rules.
Non-bank finance
companies (NBFC) have been
flouting this rule and
have been handing
over large cash loans
by asking customers to
sign an 'indemnity' for
accepting liability
against income-tax
actions, sources told
Reuters.
This has resulted in
the RBI stepping up vigilance
against non-complying lenders
to protect customer interest and
avoid build up of systemic risk,
one of the sources said.
On Wednesday, the RBI’s
letter reiterated the law.
REUTERS

Canara Bank Q4 net profit up

18%; declares ~16.1 dividend
Canara Bank’s net profit rose by 18.33 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y)
to ~3,757 crore for the January-March quarter (Q4) of 2023-24 on the
back of a steady rise in interest income and a decline in provisions.
Sequentially, the lender’s profit rose by 2.76 per cent from ~3,656
crore in the quarter ended December (Q3) of the financial year 2023-
2024. For FY25, bank’s net profit rose 37.25 per cent to ~14,554 crore
from ~10,604 crore for FY23. The board recommended a dividend of
~16.10 per equity share, subject to shareholder approval.BS REPORTER

India calls for re-energising talks

on development agenda at WTO
India has called for re-energising discussions in the World Trade
Organisation (WTO) on the development dimension to achieve
tangible progress and meaningful outcomes. In a communication
to the WTO, the country said that there is a substantial unfinished
development agenda emanating from the recently concluded 13th
ministerial conference of the WTO in Abu Dhabi. PTI