Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra during the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) announcements on Wednesday stated that the apex bank will standardise the procedure for settlement of claims in respect to bank accounts, and articles kept in safe custody or safe deposit lockers of deceased bank customers. “This is expected to make settlement more convenient and simpler,” he said.

The RBI also made other consumer-centric announcements during MPC. “As Jan-Dhan Scheme completes 10 years, a large number of accounts have fallen due for re-KYC. The banks are organising camps at Panchayat level from July 1 to September 30, in an endeavour to provide services at customer doorsteps. Apart from opening new bank accounts and re-KYC, the camps will focus on micro insurance and pension schemes for financial inclusion and customer grievance redress,” it added.

The apex bank is also expanding the functionality in the RBI Retail-Direct platform to enable retail investors to invest in treasury bills through systematic investment plans.

Separately, the RBI stated that bank credit grew by 12.1 per cent during 2024-25, slower than the 16.3 per cent recorded in 2023-24 but still higher than the average growth rate of 10.3 per cent seen in the previous ten years. During 2024-25, the flow of non-food bank credit decreased by about Rs 3.4 lakh crore, dropping from Rs 21.4 lakh crore to nearly Rs 18 lakh crore. This decline was balanced by increased funding from non-bank sources.

Despite the slower growth in bank credit, total financial resources available to the commercial sector rose from Rs 33.9 lakh crore in 2023-24 to Rs 34.8 lakh crore in 2024-25. This upward trend has continued into the current financial year.

Large corporates have increasingly used market-based instruments such as commercial paper and corporate bonds to raise funds, reducing their reliance on bank credit. Improved profitability has also allowed these companies to use internal resources for business expansion.