SBI Eases Minimum Balance Rules On Savings Accounts
SBI cut minimum balance requirement to Rs 3,000 from Rs 5,000 earlier.
State Bank of India has lowered its minimum balance requirement for savings accounts and the fee applicable for not maintaining it, just four months after it re-introduced such charges.
The minimum average balance requirement in metro cities has been revised to Rs 3,000 from Rs 5,000 earlier, SBI said in a media statement. The charges for non-maintenance of minimum balance has also been cut by 20-50 percent across all categories, the statement said.
In April, SBI had brought back charges for not maintaining the minimum balance after a gap of five years. An amount of Rs 100 plus taxes would be charged if the savings account balance fell below 75 percent of the minimum requirement in metros, SBI had said. The penalty was implemented to help the bank recover costs of Jan Dhan accounts which offer zero balance, free insurance cover and overdraft facilities. Last week, it had called for a review of the minimum balance fee after receiving feedback from customers.
SBI has around 42 crore savings bank accounts, of which 13 crore were already exempt. The new revision is likely to benefit another 5 crore account holders, SBI said.
Jan Dhan accounts were already exempt from the minimum balance requirement and the fee related to it. The other categories which have now been excluded from the minimum requirement are financial inclusion accounts, basic savings bank deposit accounts, small accounts, accounts of minors and pensioners and those who receive social welfare benefits, the statement added.
The revised requirement and charges will be applicable from October 2017.
Shares of SBI had closed 1.2 percent lower ahead of the anounncement, while the country's benchmark BSE Sensex closed 0.9 percent lower.