The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has expressed concern over the increasing freeze and inoperative accounts in banks. Banks have been instructed to take all possible steps immediately to reduce such accounts. Banks have been asked to adopt easy processes like mobile or internet banking, non-home branch, video customer identification for KYC of such accounts. Along with this, it has also been asked to ensure that the amount coming through various schemes of the central or state governments in such accounts continues to be deposited without any problem. Accounts in which there is no transaction for more than two years are put in the category of inactive accounts. Unclaimed deposits increased by 28% on an annual basis
RBI has advised banks to release reports on inoperative accounts on a quarterly basis. Earlier, RBI had instructed banks to increase monitoring to prevent fraud from such accounts. According to government data, by the end of 2023, more than Rs 1 lakh crore was stuck in such accounts. Out of these, about 42 thousand crores are unclaimed. In December 2023, the Finance Ministry had informed Parliament that in March 2023, unclaimed deposits in banks had increased by 28% year-on-year to Rs 42,270 crore from Rs 32,934 crore in March 2022. Of these, private banks have Rs 6,087 crore. Inoperative accounts: Everything you need to know Why has RBI given instructions to monitor inactive accounts?
RBI had instructed banks to monitor reactivated accounts for six months to reduce the risk of fraud from such accounts. Also, instructions were given to monitor accounts that have been inactive for one year. How are inoperative accounts increasing the risk of fraud?
According to Ketan Mukhija, Senior Partner, Bergian Law, these accounts are often targeted for scams and identity theft. Bank employees can misuse these accounts for unauthorized transactions. How can inactive accounts promote illegal activities?
According to Vikram Babbar, partner, EY Forensic and Integrity Services, illegal money can be sent to these accounts. Withdrawals can be made immediately to erase the transaction. These become ideal mediums for illegal operations. Fraud of 11 thousand crores in 9 months
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, India lost Rs 11,333 crore due to cyber fraud during the first nine months of 2024. About 20% of Jan Dhan accounts were inactive till December 2023. This means that out of a total of 51 crore Jan Dhan accounts, about 10.3 crore accounts were inactive. Note: Interest may stop in inactive accounts, RBI can invest money in welfare Activate the account like this: This process is free, account can be activated with a transaction of ? 100 Bank is trending on Google
RBI has expressed concern over the increasing freeze and inoperative accounts in banks. After this news, the bank is being continuously searched on Google. If we look at the Google trends of the last 30 days, it is clear that the graph of searching for banks has increased. Source- GOOGLE TRENDS
