Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued guidelines for licensing of small finance banks and payments banks on November 27, 2014 and granted in-principle approvals to 10 applicants to set up small finance banks and to 11 applicants to set up payments banks.

The guidelines for small finance banks provide inter-alia that (i) eligible promoters could be resident individuals/professionals with 10 years of banking and finance experience including companies controlled by them etc. (ii) shall primarily undertake basic banking activities of acceptance of deposits and lending to unserved and underserved sections (iii) The minimum paid-up equity capital for small finance banks shall be ₹ 100 crore and (iv) all prudential norms and regulations of RBI as applicable to existing commercial banks including requirement of maintenance of Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) and Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR).

The guidelines for payment banks provide inter-alia that (i) eligible promoters can be non-bank Pre-paid Payment Instrument (PPI) issuers; and other entities like mobile telephone companies etc. (ii) shall primarily accept demand deposits upto maximum balance of ₹ 1,00,000 per individual customer. (iii) Issue ATM/debit cards, payments and remittance services. (iv) maintain CRR with the Reserve Bank on its outside demand and time liabilities and invest at least 75 per cent of its “demand deposit balances” in SLR eligible Government securities/treasury bills.

Licensed under Section 22 (1) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, Small Finance and Payment banks have to comply with all regulatory and supervisory frameworks that are applicable to commercial banks with suitable calibrations in view of the differentiated scope of such banks.

This was stated by Shri Santosh Kumar Gangwar, Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance in written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.

Bank licensing for small finance and payments banks expands access while imposing capital and prudential compliance. RBI guidelines establish licensing and regulation for small finance banks and payments banks: small finance banks must be promoted by eligible persons, focus on deposit-taking and lending to unserved and underserved sectors, meet a minimum paid-up equity capital requirement, and comply with prudential norms including CRR and SLR; payments banks may be promoted by specified non-bank entities, accept capped demand deposits per customer, offer payment and remittance services and payment instruments, maintain CRR on outside liabilities, and invest a prescribed share of demand deposits in SLR-eligible government securities. Both are licensed under the Banking Regulation Act and subject to calibrated commercial-bank supervisory frameworks.