Minimum balance charges swell pvt banks' coffers by nearly Rs 5,000 cr in FY26

Synopsis

Private banks collected over Rs 4,900 crore from account holders for minimum balance failures. Public sector banks also gathered Rs 2,100 crore during the same financial year. HDFC and Axis Banks led private sector collections for these account charges. No penalties are applied to basic savings accounts, including Jan Dhan accounts. The government introduced a credit guarantee scheme to support businesses facing liquidity issues.

HDFC, Axis account for 58% of private banks' minimum balance charges

Private sector banks collected nearly Rs 5,000 crore from customers in FY26 as charges for failing to maintain the minimum average balance in savings and current accounts, according to data shared by the government in Parliament on Tuesday.

Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said private banks collected Rs 4,948.71 crore during the financial year, more than double the Rs 2,137.92 crore collected by public sector banks (PSBs) over the same period.

Among private lenders, HDFC Bank accounted for the highest collection at Rs 1,798.14 crore, followed by Axis Bank at Rs 1,081.33 crore, based on Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data cited by the minister.

Together, the two banks collected Rs 2,879.47 crore, accounting for about 58% of the total amount collected by 19 private sector banks.

Chaudhary clarified that "No penal charges are levied on Basic Savings Bank Deposit Accounts, including Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) Accounts, etc."

In a separate reply, the minister said the financial position of public sector banks has strengthened significantly in recent years.

"The financial health of PSBs has shown significant improvement with healthy balance sheets, historically high profits and multi-decadal low level of gross non-performing assets (GNPAs)," Chaudhary said.

He added that public sector banks have also recorded sustained credit growth across multiple sectors of the economy.

The minister also informed the House that the government introduced the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 5.0 in May 2026 to help businesses facing short-term liquidity challenges arising from the West Asia crisis.

Under the scheme, the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Ltd (NCGTC) provides guarantee coverage to member lending institutions for additional credit extended to eligible borrowers. The scheme offers 100% guarantee coverage for MSMEs and 90% coverage for non-MSMEs and the scheduled passenger airline sector, with an overall credit outlay of Rs 2.55 lakh crore, including Rs 5,000 crore earmarked for airlines, Chaudhary said.

(With inputs from PTI)