Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman chaired the 24th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) here today.
The meeting was attended by Dr. Bhagwat Kishanrao Karad, MoS (Finance); Shri Pankaj Chaudhary, MoS (Finance); Shri Shaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India; Dr. T. V. Somanathan, Finance Secretary and Secretary, Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance; Shri Ajay Seth, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance; Shri Tarun Bajaj, Secretary, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance; Shri Debasish Panda, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance; Shri Rajesh Verma, Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs; Dr. Krishnamurthy V. Subramanian, Chief Economic Adviser, Ministry of Finance; Shri Ajay Tyagi, Chairperson, Securities and Exchange Board of India; Shri Supratim Bandyopadhyay, Chairperson, Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority; Dr. M. S. Sahoo, Chairperson, Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India; Shri Injeti Srinivas, Chairperson, International Financial Services Centres Authority; Ms. T. L. Alamelu, Member (Non-Life), Insurance and Regulatory Development Authority of India; and the Secretary of the FSDC, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance.
The meeting deliberated on the various mandates of the FSDC, viz., Financial Stability, Financial Sector Development, Inter-regulatory Coordination, Financial Literacy, Financial Inclusion, and Macro prudential supervision of the economy including the functioning of large financial conglomerates etc.
It was noted that there is a need to keep a continuous vigil by Government and all regulators on the financial conditions.
The Council also, inter alia, discussed issues relating to management of stressed assets, strengthening institutional mechanism for financial stability analysis, financial inclusion, framework for resolution of financial institutions and issues related to IBC processes, banks’ exposure to various sectors and Government, data sharing mechanisms of government authorities, internationalisation of Indian Rupee and pension sector related issues.
The Council also took note of the activities undertaken by the FSDC Sub-Committee chaired by the Governor, RBI and the action taken by members on the past decisions of FSDC.
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Ministry of Finance Press Release dated 03 Sept 2021
PM releases a special commemorative coin on the occasion of 125th Birth Anniversary of Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Ji
Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Ji was also a great devotee of Bharat: PM
It is our resolve that the world should benefit from our knowledge of Yoga and Ayurveda: PM
Difficult to imagine the status and form of India without the social revolution of the Bhakti period: PM
Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Ji connected Bhakti Vedanta with the consciousness of the world
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi released a special commemorative coin on the occasion of the 125th Birth Anniversary of Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Ji today via video conference. Union Minister For Culture, Tourism and Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Shri G Kishan Reddy, among others, was present on the occasion.
Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister mentioned the happy coincidence of Janmashtami day before and the 125th birth anniversary of Srila Prabhupada ji. ‘It is like achieving happiness and contentment of sadhana together. He also noted that the occasion is taking place amidst the celebration of Azadi ka Amrit mahotsav. This is how millions of followers of Srila Prabhupada Swami and millions of Krishna devotees all over the world are experiencing today’, the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister noted the supernatural devotion of Prabhupada Swami for Lord Krishna and said that he was also a great devotee of Bharat. He fought in the freedom struggle of the country. He had refused to take his diploma from Scottish College in support of the non-cooperation movement, the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister said our knowledge of yoga spread all over the world and sustainable lifestyle of India, science like Ayurveda are spread all over the world.It is our resolve that the whole world should benefit from it, Shri Modi said. The Prime Minister said whenever we go to any other country, and when people meet there saying ‘Hare Krishna’, we feel a sense of belonging and pride. The Prime Minister said that the same feeling will be there when Make in India products get the same affinity. We can learn a lot from ISKCON in this regard
The Prime Minister said that in the times of slavery, Bhakti kept the spirit of India alive. He said today scholars assess that if there was no social revolution of the Bhakti period, it would have been difficult to imagine the status and form of India. Bhakti connected the creature with God by removing the dicrimination of faith, social hierarchies and privileges. Even in those difficult times, saints like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who tied the society with the spirit of devotion and gave the mantra of ‘Faith to Confidence’.
The Prime Minister said at one time, if a sage like Swami Vivekananda came who took Vedanta to the west, then Srila Prabhupada and ISKCON took up this great task when the time of taking Bhakti Yoga to the world came. He connected Bhakti Vedanta with the consciousness of the world, said the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister said today there are hundreds of ISKCON temples in different countries of the world and many Gurukuls are keeping Indian culture alive. ISKCON has disseminated to the world that for India, faith means zeal, enthusiasm, and gaiety and faith in humanity.Shri Modi highlighted the service work of ISKCON during earthquake in Kutch, Uttarakhand tragedy, cyclones in Odisha and Bengal. The Prime Minister also praised the efforts of ISKCON during the pandemic.
परसो श्री कृष्ण जन्माष्टमी थी और आज हम श्रील प्रभुपाद जी की 125वीं जन्मजयंती मना रहे हैं।
ये ऐसा है जैसे साधना का सुख और संतोष एक साथ मिल जाए।
इसी भाव को आज पूरी दुनिया में श्रील प्रभुपाद स्वामी के लाखों करोड़ों अनुयाई और लाखों करोड़ों कृष्ण भक्त अनुभव कर रहे हैं: PM— PMO India (@PMOIndia) September 1, 2021
हम सब जानते हैं कि प्रभुपाद स्वामी एक अलौकिक कृष्णभक्त तो थे ही, साथ ही वो एक महान भारत भक्त भी थे।
उन्होंने देश के स्वतन्त्रता संग्राम में संघर्ष किया था।
उन्होंने असहयोग आंदोलन के समर्थन में स्कॉटिश कॉलेज से अपना डिप्लोमा तक लेने से मना कर दिया था: PM— PMO India (@PMOIndia) September 1, 2021
मानवता के हित में भारत दुनिया को कितना कुछ दे सकता है, आज इसका एक बड़ा उदाहरण है विश्व भर में फैला हुआ हमारा योग का ज्ञान!
भारत की जो sustainable lifestyle है, आयुर्वेद जैसे जो विज्ञान हैं, हमारा संकल्प है कि इसका लाभ पूरी दुनिया को मिले: PM @narendramodi— PMO India (@PMOIndia) September 1, 2021
हम जब भी किसी दूसरे देश में जाते हैं, और वहाँ जब लोग ‘हरे कृष्ण’ बोलकर मिलते हैं तो हमें कितना अपनापन लगता है, कितना गौरव भी होता है।
कल्पना करिए, यही अपनापन जब हमें मेक इन इंडिया products के लिए मिलेगा, तो हमें कैसा लगेगा: PM @narendramodi— PMO India (@PMOIndia) September 1, 2021
हम जब भी किसी दूसरे देश में जाते हैं, और वहाँ जब लोग ‘हरे कृष्ण’ बोलकर मिलते हैं तो हमें कितना अपनापन लगता है, कितना गौरव भी होता है।
कल्पना करिए, यही अपनापन जब हमें मेक इन इंडिया products के लिए मिलेगा, तो हमें कैसा लगेगा: PM @narendramodi— PMO India (@PMOIndia) September 1, 2021
आज विद्वान इस बात का आकलन करते हैं कि अगर भक्तिकाल की सामाजिक क्रांति न होती तो भारत न जाने कहाँ होता, किस स्वरूप में होता!
लेकिन उस कठिन समय में चैतन्य महाप्रभु जैसे संतों ने हमारे समाज को भक्ति की भावना से बांधा, उन्होने ‘विश्वास से आत्मविश्वास’ का मंत्र दिया: PM @narendramodi— PMO India (@PMOIndia) September 1, 2021
एक समय अगर स्वामी विवेकानंद जैसे मनीषी आए जिन्होंने वेद-वेदान्त को पश्चिम तक पहुंचाया, तो वहीं विश्व को जब भक्तियोग को देने की ज़िम्मेदारी आई तो श्रील प्रभुपाद जी और इस्कॉन ने इस महान कार्य का बीड़ा उठाया।
उन्होंने भक्ति वेदान्त को दुनिया की चेतना से जोड़ने का काम किया: PM— PMO India (@PMOIndia) September 1, 2021
आज दुनिया के अलग अलग देशों में सैकड़ों इस्कॉन मंदिर हैं, कितने ही गुरुकुल भारतीय संस्कृति को जीवंत बनाए हुये हैं।
इस्कॉन ने दुनिया को बताया है कि भारत के लिए आस्था का मतलब है- उमंग, उत्साह, और उल्लास और मानवता पर विश्वास: PM @narendramodi— PMO India (@PMOIndia) September 1, 2021
Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman today unveiled the fourth edition of the Public Sector Bank (PSB) Reforms Agenda ‘EASE 4.0’ for 2021-22 – tech-enabled, simplified, and collaborative banking. She unveiled the annual report for the PSB Reforms Agenda EASE 3.0 for 2020-21 and participated in the awards ceremony to felicitate best performing banks on EASE 3.0 Banking Reforms Index.
Shri Pankaj Jain, Additional Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Shri Amit Agrawal, Additional Secretary, Department of Financial Services & Chairman IBA, Shri Rajkiran Rai G., were also present at the event.
SBI, BoB Union Bank of India win top honous.
State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda and Union Bank of India have won the awards for best performing banks for PSB Reforms EASE 3.0 based on the EASE index.
Indian Bank won the award for the best improvement from the baseline performance. SBI, BoB, Union Bank of India, Punjab National Bank and Canara Bank won the top awards in different themes of the PSB Reforms Agenda EASE 3.0.
Public Sector Banks have reported healthy profits and have accelerated on technology-driven reforms. These banks have reported a profit of Rs. 31,817 crore in FY21 as compared to a loss of Rs. 26,016 crore in FY20. This is the first year when PSBs have reported profit after five years of losses. Total gross non-performing assets stood at Rs. 6.16 lakh crore as of March 2021 – a reduction of Rs. 62,000 crore from March 2020 levels.
Digital lending
Credit@click was a flagship initiative under EASE 3.0. Nearly 4.4 lakh customers have been benefitted through such instantaneous and simplified credit access.
PSBs have setup mechanism for customers where they can register loan requests 24X7 through digital channels such as Mobile and Internet banking, SMS, missed call and call centre. In FY21, PSBs have collectively disbursed Rs. 40,819 crore of fresh personal, home and vehicle loans through leads sourced from such digital channels.
The top 7 PSBs have built analytics capabilities through the setup of dedicated analytics teams and IT infrastructure to proactively offer loans to its existing customers. Such loan offers were generated using the existing customer transactions data within the banks. In FY21, Rs. 49,777 crore of fresh retail loan disbursements were made by the top 7 PSBs based on these credit offers.
PSBs have also extensively used external partnerships and dedicated marketing salesforce network for the sourcing of retail segment and MSME segment loans. Sourcing from such channels has been 9.1 lakh loans in FY21.
Mobile/Internet banking and customer service
Nearly 72% of financial transactions happening at PSBs is now happening through digital channels. PSBs are now offering services across call centres, Internet banking, and Mobile banking in 14 regional languages such as Telugu, Marathi, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam, Gujarati, Bengali, Odia, Kashmiri, Konkani, Hindi, Punjabi, Assamese for the ease of customers.
For continual improvement in coverage under financial inclusion initiatives, there was a 13% growth in transactions provided by Bank Mitras in rural areas and 50% growth in enrolments in Micro personal accident insurance in Q4FY21 compared to Q4FY20.
PSBs have recorded a phenomenal growth in their performance over four quarters since the launch of EASE 3.0 Reforms Agenda. The overall score of PSBs increased by 35% between March-2020 and March-2021, with the average EASE index score improving from 44.2 to 59.7 out of 100. Significant progress is seen across six themes of the Reforms Agenda, with the highest improvement seen in the themes of ‘Smart Lending’ and ‘Institutionalising Prudent Banking’.
The next edition of EASE reforms i.e. EASE 4.0 aims to further the agenda of customer-centric digital transformation and deeply embed digital and data into PSBs’ ways of working.
Under EASE 4.0, PSBs would offer:
PSBs have stepped up to support the country during COVID-19 : FM
Finance Minister complimented Public sector banks for continuing to provide uninterrupted service and credit delivery to its customers, despite the Covid pandemic. They have also been at the forefront of extending banking services in the remotest parts of the country, she added.
From different modes of staffing to remote working, 80,000+ bank branches were operational during COVID-19. Additionally, there has been around two times increase in Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AEPS) transactions through micro ATMs, and enhanced doorstep banking support by 75,000+ Bank Mitras.
Ministry of Finance Press Release dated 24th July 2021
The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has been established as a unified regulator to develop and regulate financial products, financial services, and financial institutions in the International Financial Services Centres (IFSCs) in India.
IFSCA vide circular dated 9th July 2021 issued the framework for setting up of International Trade Financing Services Platform (“ITFS”) at GIFT International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) for providing Trade Financing Services.
In this regard, IFSCA has invited application from eligible entities, which are desirous of setting up and operating the ITFS, to apply in the prescribed format along with supporting documents to the IFSCA by 15th of September 2021.
IFSCA upon satisfaction in the first instance will grant an in-principle approval to operate in IFSCA Regulatory Sandbox environment for such period as it may consider appropriate, before allowing regular operations.
The ITFS would be an electronic platform for facilitating the trade finance requirements of exporters and importers by providing access to multiple financiers. Once operational, it will play an instrumental role in arranging credit for exporters & importers from global institutions through Factoring, Forfaiting and other trade financing services at competitive cost. The platform is expected to be leveraged by exporters and importers across the world for availing trade finance services, thereby making GIFT IFSC a preferred location for international trade financing.
A copy of the circular dated 23rd August 2021 inviting applications to set up ITFS at GIFT IFSC is available on the website of the authority (www.ifsca.gov.in/circular).
Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman took a meeting with Mr. Salil Parekh, MD & CEO, Infosys here today afternoon to convey the deep disappointment and concerns of the Government and the taxpayers about the continuing glitches in the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Department even after two and half months since its launch, which was also delayed. Smt. Sitharaman sought an explanation from Infosys for the repeated issues faced by taxpayers.
The Ministry of Finance emphasised that there is a need for putting in more resources and efforts on the part of Infosys so that the much delayed delivery of agreed services is ensured. Mr. Parekh was also sensitised on the difficulties that the taxpayers were facing and the problems that are arising on account of the delays in the functioning of the portal.
The Finance Minister demanded that the issues faced by taxpayers on current functionalities of the portal should be resolved by the team by 15th September, 2021 so that taxpayers and professionals can work seamlessly on the portal.
Mr. Parekh explained that he and his team are doing everything to ensure the smooth functioning of the portal. Further, Mr. Parekh said that over 750 team members are working on this project and Mr. Pravin Rao COO of Infosys, is personally overseeing this project. Mr. Parekh also assured that Infosys is working expeditiously to ensure a glitch-free experience to the taxpayers on the portal.
Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman to launch the National Monetisation Pipeline tomorrow
The National Monetisation Pipeline comprises a four-year pipeline of the Central Government’s brownfield infrastructure assets
Posted Date:- Aug 22, 2021
Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, will launch the National Monetisation Pipeline tomorrow at New Delhi.
The National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) comprises a four-year pipeline of the Central Government’s brownfield infrastructure assets. Besides providing visibility to investors, NMP will also serve as a medium-term roadmap for the Asset Monetisation initiative of the Government.
The Union Budget 2021-22 laid a lot of emphasis on Asset Monetisation as a means to raise innovative and alternative financing for infrastructure, and included a number of key announcements.
The National Monetisation Pipeline book will be released in the presence of Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog, Dr Rajiv Kumar, CEO, Shri Amitabh Kant, and Secretaries of relevant line ministries whose assets constitute the monetisation pipeline.
Pilot Launch of International Bullion Exchange – The Gateway for Bullion Imports
Posted Date:- Aug 18, 2021
Shri Injeti Srinivas, Chairperson, International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), launched the pilot run/soft launch here today. The International Bullion Exchange is scheduled to go live on October 1, 2021 the Foundation Day of IFSCA.
Following the announcement by Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman in Union Budget 2020-21, the International Financial Services Centres Authority (Bullion Exchange) Regulations, 2020 were notified on December 11, 2020 which inter alia cover the Bullion Exchange, Clearing Corporation, Depository and Vaults. Government has also taken steps to notify bullion spot trading and bullion depository receipts with underlying bullion as financial products and bullion related services as financial services.
The International Bullion Exchange shall be the “Gateway for Bullion Imports into India”, wherein all the bullion imports for domestic consumption shall be channelized through the exchange. The exchange ecosystem is expected to bring all the market participants at a common transparent platform for bullion trading and provide an efficient price discovery, assurance in the quality of gold, enable greater integration with other segments of financial markets and help establish India’s position as a dominant trading hub in the World.
Pursuant to Memorandum of Understanding between National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE), the Multi Commodity Exchange of India Limited (MCX), India INX International Exchange (IFSC) Limited (INDIA INX), National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL), Central Depository Services (India) Limited (CDSL), the holding company India International Bullion Holding IFSC Ltd. (IIBH) has been created for setting up and operationalising International Bullion Exchange, Bullion Clearing Corporation and Bullion Depository in IFSC, GIFT City.
The IFSCA has approved the application by the Holding Company for setting up the International Bullion Exchange through the subsidiary of the holding company, “India International Bullion Exchange IFSC Ltd.”, encompassing the Bullion Exchange and the Bullion Clearing Corporation.
CDSL-IFSC, a foreign depository has been designated as the Bullion Depository for the Bullion Exchange responsible for managing the Vault Manager.
Ministry of Finance Press Release dated 10th Aug 2021
Measures taken to curb food inflation and alleviate problems of common man due to COVID-19
The Government is taking effective measures to curb inflation especially food inflation keeping in view of the condition of the people suffering from coronavirus pandemic situation in the country. This was stated by Union Minister of State for Finance Shri Pankaj Chaudhary in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.
Enumerating more steps taken by the Government to alleviate the problems of the common man, the Minister stated that the buffer stock of pulses have been used to tackle price volatility of these commodities. Pulses from the buffer were used very effectively during the COVID-19 pandemic for supplying @ 1 kg per household per month free of cost to approx. 19 crore National Food Security Act (NFSA) beneficiary households between April and November 2020.
The Minister further stated that the Government imposed stock limits on some pulses under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 in July 2021, which has had a salutary effect in terms of softening of prices.
The Minister stated that the Government eased import restrictions to enhance domestic availability of Tur, Urad and Moong and have also entered into MoUs with Myanmar, Malawi, Mozambique for pulses import. Basic import duty and Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess on Masur have been brought down to zero and 10% respectively.
The Minister stated that steps were taken to soften the prices of edible oils and the duty on Crude Palm Oil (CPO) has been cut, bringing down the effective tax rate on CPO to 30.25% from the earlier 35.75%. Further, the duty on Refined palm oil / Palmolein has been reduced to 37.5% from 45%, the Minister added.
Nearly 72% of financial transactions of Public Sector Banks (PSBs) done through digital channels
Customers active on digital channels doubled from 3.4 crore in FY2019-20 to 7.6 crore in FY2020-21Posted Date:- Aug 10, 2021
Nearly 72% of financial transactions of Public Sector Banks (PSBs) are now done through digital channels, with customers active on digital channels having doubled from 3.4 crore in FY2019-20 to 7.6 crore in FY2020-21. This was stated by Union Minister of State for Finance Dr Bhagwat Kisanrao Karad in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.
The Minister stated, however, that the license for banking is given by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and RBI has informed that it is not considering a separate licensing category for digital banks at present.
The Minister further enumerated a number of steps that have been taken to facilitate digital banking including, inter-alia: –
(1) Under the Public Sector Banks (PSB) EASE Reforms Agenda,—
Enhanced access to mobile banking and Internet banking has been enabled through an increase in the PSB average for the number of services offered (43), customer-friendly features (135) and regional languages available on the customer interface (8);
End-to-end automated digital lending has been introduced in larger PSBs for unsecured personal loans (in five PSBs), loans to micro-enterprises (“Shishu Mudra”, in five PSBs) and renewals of loans to micro, small and medium enterprises (in three PSBs);
Digital retail loan request initiation through digital channels has been enabled in all the seven large PSBs, with retail disbursements from loan requests so initiated in the financial year (FY) 2020-21 amounting to Rs. 40,819 crore;
Customer-need-driven, analytics-based credit offers have been given an impetus, resulting in Rs. 49,777 crore of fresh retail loan disbursements by the seven larger PSBs in FY2020-21.
(2) Government’s Jeevan Pramaan initiative for pensioners has enabled pensioners the facility to update their annual life certificate online.
(3) Initiation of digital lending has been made contactless through PSBloansin59minutes.com, using triangulation of credit bureau, income-tax and goods and services tax (GST) data, to provide online in principle approval for loans to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), home loans, personal loans and automobile loans.
(4) Online bill discounting for MSMEs has been enabled on a competitive basis through onboarding of PSBs onto the Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS) platform.
Ministry of Finance Press Release dated 10 Aug 2021
The Government of India (GoI) has announced the Sale (Re-issue) of (i) ‘5.63% Government Security, 2026’ for a notified amount of Rs 11,000 crore (nominal) through price based auction using uniform price method (ii) ‘GoI Floating Rate Bonds, 2033’ for a notified amount of Rs 3,000 crore (nominal) through price based auction using uniform price method (iii) ‘6.64% Government Security, 2035’ for a notified amount of Rs 10,000 crore (nominal) through price based auction using uniform price method, and (iv) ‘6.67% Government Security, 2050’ for a notified amount of Rs 7,000 crore (nominal) through price based auction using multiple price method. GoI will have the option to retain additional subscription up to Rs8,000 crore against the above Security/Securities. The auctions will be conducted by the Reserve Bank of India, Mumbai Office, Fort, Mumbai on Friday i.e. August 13, 2021.
Up to 5% of the notified amount of the sale of the Securities will be allotted to eligible individuals and Institutions as per the Scheme for Non-Competitive Bidding Facility in the Auction of Government Securities.
Both competitive and non-competitive bids for the auction should be submitted in electronic format on the Reserve Bank of India Core Banking Solution (E-Kuber) system on August 13, 2021. The non-competitive bids should be submitted between 10.30 a.m. and 11.00 a.m. and the competitive bids should be submitted between 10.30 a.m. and 11.30 a.m.
The result of the auctions will be announced on August 13, 2021 (Friday) and payment by successful bidders will be on August 17, 2021 (Tuesday).
The Securities will be eligible for “When Issued” trading in accordance with the guidelines on ‘When Issued transactions in Central Government Securities’ issued by the Reserve Bank of India vide circular No. RBI/2018-19/25 dated July 24, 2018 as amended from time to time.
Ministry of Finance Press Release dated 09th Aug 2021
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Business So Simple 