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Flipkart gets RBI approval for direct lending

Flipkart gets RBI approval for direct lending

Ecommerce firm Flipkart has secured non-bank financial company (NBFC) licence from the Reserve Bank of India. This will enable the company to offer loans directly to consumers and sellers on its platform.
The licence has been granted to Flipkart Finance Private Limited. Also, it is said that this is the first time a major ecommerce company has received NBFC status. Walmart-owned Flipkart had applied for the licence in 2022 and it is said that the company might start its lending operation soon.
It is reported that the ecommerce giant will be lending directly to its customers on its platform. Last month, in the townhall 'Flipster Connect', CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy had said that the company will be hiring 5,000 employees and that a majority of these hires will be working at Flipkart Minutes, which is the firm's quick commerce arm and Super.money, its fintech platform.
Krishnamurthy also spoke about the flip back of the company and said that he was confident that they will continue to focus on profitability with a renewed emphasis on customer centricity.

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Knowledge Nugget : RBI's Monetary policy instruments—From Repo Rate to CRR, UPSC must-know
Knowledge Nugget : RBI's Monetary policy instruments—From Repo Rate to CRR, UPSC must-know

Indian Express

time38 minutes ago

  • Indian Express

Knowledge Nugget : RBI's Monetary policy instruments—From Repo Rate to CRR, UPSC must-know

Take a look at the essential concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up your knowledge. Here's your knowledge nugget for today. (Relevance: This is an important topic for both Prelims and Mains. In 2024, GS III, a question was asked to comment on the effectiveness of the monetary policy of the RBI to control inflation. Prelims questions have been asked on the impact of increasing or decreasing the repo rate. In this regard, understanding the RBI's monetary policy instruments becomes important for your exam.) The Reserve Bank of India's six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has slashed the repo rate by a bigger-than-expected 50 basis points to 5.50 per cent, marking the third consecutive reduction since February 2025. The central bank also cut the cash reserve ratio of banks by 100 basis points to 3 per cent, releasing Rs 2.5 lakh crore of lendable resources to the banking system. 1. The interest rate that the RBI charges when commercial banks borrow money from it is called the repo rate. The interest rate the central bank pays commercial banks when they park their excess cash is called the reverse repo rate. 2. Impact of reducing repo rate: When the RBI wants to encourage economic activity in the economy, it reduces the repo rate. Doing this enables commercial banks to bring down the interest rates they charge (on their loans) as well as the interest rate they pay on deposits. This, in turn, incentivises people to spend money, because keeping their savings in the bank now pays back a little less, and businesses are incentivised to take new loans for new investments because new loans now cost a little less as well. 3. Impact of increasing repo rate: When the RBI wants to control inflation, it increases the repo rate. Banks thus have to pay more interest to borrow from the RBI, which means they will charge more interest to their borrowers. At a macro level, this inhibits people from borrowing money as well as from spending, which in turn reduces the amount of money in the market, and thus negates inflation. Apart from Repo rate and reverse repo rate, the RBI uses several other direct and indirect instruments to maintain price stability while keeping the objective of growth. (i) Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) Rate: It is the rate at which the RBI, on an overnight basis, accepts uncollateralised deposits from all liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) participants. The SDF is also a financial stability tool in addition to its role in liquidity management. It was introduced in 2022 to replace the fixed rate reverse repo (FRRR) as the floor of the liquidity adjustment facility corridor. (ii) Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) Rate: It is the rate at which a bank can borrow, on an overnight basis, from the RBI in an emergency situation when inter-bank liquidity dries up completely. It is typically placed at 25 basis points above the policy repo rate. (iii) Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF): LAF is a facility extended by RBI to the scheduled commercial banks (excluding Regional Rural Banks) and Primary Dealers to avail of liquidity in case of requirement or park excess funds with RBI in case of excess liquidity on an overnight basis against the collateral of G-Secs including State Development Loans (SDLs). (iv) Main Liquidity Management Tool: To manage the frictional liquidity requirements, a 14-day term repo/reverse repo auction operation at a variable rate is conducted to coincide with the cash reserve ratio (CRR) maintenance cycle. (v) Bank Rate: In case of shortfalls in meeting the reserve requirements (cash reserve ratio and statutory liquidity ratio) by the banks, the Reserve Bank provides to buy or rediscount bills of exchange or other commercial papers at a rate which is called Bank rate. (vi) Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR): It is the percentage of a bank's net demand and time liabilities (NDTL) that is required to be maintained in liquid cash with the RBI as a reserve. The CRR percentage is determined by the RBI from time to time. (vii) Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR): Every bank is required to maintain in Indian assets, the value of which shall not be less than such percentage of the total of its demand and time liabilities in India as on the last Friday of the second preceding fortnight, in the form of liquid cash, gold, government and state government securities. (vii) Open Market Operations (OMOs): These include outright purchase or sale of government securities by the Reserve Bank for injection or absorption of durable liquidity in the banking system. 1. In May 2016, the RBI Act was amended to provide a legislative mandate to the central bank to operate the country's monetary policy framework. 2. The RBI formed an 'Expert Committee to Revise and Strengthen the Monetary Policy Framework' under the chairmanship of Urjit Patel in 2013 recommended a flexible inflation target (FIT) for the RBI. In May 2016, the RBI Act, 1934 was amended to provide a statutory basis for the implementation of the flexible inflation targeting framework. 3. Under Section 45ZA, the Central Government, in consultation with the RBI, determines the inflation target in terms of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), once in five years and notifies it in the Official Gazette. On August 5, 2016, the Central government notified the Consumer Price Index (CPI) at 4 per cent with a band of +/-2 per cent. On March 31, 2021, the Central Government retained the inflation target and the tolerance band for the next 5-year period – April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2026. FYI: Inflation refers to the rate at which the general price level for goods and services increases over a period of time, causing a decrease in purchasing power of money or real income. In other words, as inflation rises, each unit of currency can buy fewer goods and services than before. If the RBI decides to adopt an expansionist monetary policy, which of the following would it not do? (UPSC CSE 2020) 1. Cut and optimize the Statutory Liquidity Ratio 2. Increase the Marginal Standing Facility Rate 3. Cut the Bank Rate and Repo Rate Select the correct answer using the code given below: (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 2 only (c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3 (Source: Repo Rate, RBI cuts rates again by 50 bps: Borrowers to benefit, savers and depositors to feel the pinch, What is SDF, the RBI's new tool to absorb excess liquidity to control inflation?, How inflation affects cost of living) Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter. Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – IndianExpress UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X. 🚨 Click Here to read the UPSC Essentials magazine for May 2025. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at Khushboo Kumari is a Deputy Copy Editor with The Indian Express. She has done her graduation and post-graduation in History from the University of Delhi. At The Indian Express, she writes for the UPSC section. She holds experience in UPSC-related content development. You can contact her via email: ... Read More

Bakrid bank holiday today: Are banks open or closed this Saturday on June 7, 2025 in your state?
Bakrid bank holiday today: Are banks open or closed this Saturday on June 7, 2025 in your state?

Economic Times

time39 minutes ago

  • Economic Times

Bakrid bank holiday today: Are banks open or closed this Saturday on June 7, 2025 in your state?

Bakrid bank holiday 2025 on June 7 Synopsis Many Indian bank customers are curious about bank operations on June 7, 2025, Bakrid as it is the first Saturday. Bank closures vary by state, as per the Reserve Bank of India guidelines. Many bank customers across the country are wondering whether banks are open or closed today, Saturday, June 7, 2025, as India observes Bakrid (Eid al-Adha), one of the most significant festivals in the Islamic calendar. The question has gained relevance this year because Bakrid falls on a Saturday, a day when banks are typically open, except on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month. ADVERTISEMENT According to the central government holiday list, June 7, 2025 is a public holiday. Bank holidays in June 2025: Check full list of state-wise bank holidays In India, bank closures on Bakrid vary by region. According to the Negotiable Instruments Act, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) publishes a holiday calendar that includes bank holidays unique to each state. Therefore, the state you are in will determine whether a bank is open or closed on June 7, 2025. Banks in India usually stay open on the first and third Saturdays of the month, but the fact that the festival falls on a Saturday this year has caused confusion. Banks are closed in almost all states except Gujarat, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh according to the RBI holiday calendar. All public and private sector banks in other states will be officially closed today. ADVERTISEMENT Even in states where banks are closed, online and mobile banking services will remain fully functional. Customers can continue to transfer funds, check balances, pay bills, and use ATMs for basic banking needs. However, services like cheque clearing, cash deposit at counters or documentation that need physical branch access won't be available until the following business day. Banks across India remain closed on Sundays, regardless of whether a regional or national festival falls on that day. ADVERTISEMENT Jun-25 7 11 27 30 Agartala • Ahmedabad Aizawl • • Belapur • Bengaluru • Bhopal • Bhubaneswar • • Chandigarh • Chennai • Dehradun • Gangtok • Guwahati • Hyderabad - Andhra Pradesh • Hyderabad - Telangana • Imphal • • Itanagar Jaipur • Jammu • Kanpur • Kochi • Kohima • Kolkata • Lucknow • Mumbai • Nagpur • New Delhi • Panaji • Patna • Raipur • Ranchi • Shillong • Shimla • • Srinagar • Thiruvananthapuram • Holiday Description Day Bakri ID (Id-Uz-Zuha) 7 Sant Guru Kabir Jayanti/Saga Dawa 11 Ratha Yatra/Kang (Rathajatra) 27 Remna Ni 30 Source- RBI (Catch all the Personal Finance News, Breaking News, Budget 2025 Events and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.) Subscribe to ET Prime and read the ET ePaper online. NEXT STORY

RBI's unexpectedly deep rate cut and the road ahead
RBI's unexpectedly deep rate cut and the road ahead

Time of India

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  • Time of India

RBI's unexpectedly deep rate cut and the road ahead

The accompanying reduction in the CRR by the RBI injects additional liquidity into the banking system, ensuring the availability of cheaper funding. The RBI's sharper-than-expected 50 bps rate cut and 100 bps CRR reduction aim to boost credit growth and economic activity amid subdued inflation. With a shift to a neutral stance, the central bank signals flexibility to either pause or ease further depending on future data, offering tactical opportunities across rate-sensitive sectors. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Monetary-Policy Actions and Liquidity Management Sectoral Impact Inflation Outlook and Forward Guidance Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Final Thoughts (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of .) The Reserve Bank of India has surprised markets by reducing the policy rate by fifty basis points—double the quarter-point move that economists expected—and by lowering the Cash Reserve Ratio by one percentage point. Though this marks the third rate cut of the year, the Monetary Policy Committee has simultaneously shifted its stance from 'accommodative' to 'neutral,' signalling a readiness to let fresh data guide future cutting interest rates more aggressively than anticipated, the RBI aims to invigorate credit-sensitive segments of the economy at a time when consumer price inflation remains below the 4% target. The accompanying reduction in the CRR injects additional liquidity into the banking system, ensuring that cheaper funding can flow quickly to productive sectors. Together, these moves are designed to strengthen consumption and sustain India's growth momentum without jeopardising hard-won disinflation borrowing costs should filter through to banks, non-bank finance companies, real-estate developers, automobile manufacturers, consumer-durable producers and capital-goods suppliers linked to infrastructure spending. Easier credit terms can boost mortgage demand, spur vehicle purchases, lift discretionary spending on household appliances and support order books for equipment makers. For lenders, any near-term pressure on margins is expected to be offset by stronger loan growth and improved asset quality as economic activity gathers headline inflation projected at 3.7% for the fiscal year—comfortably below target—the central bank has room to nurture growth while preserving price stability. Governor Sanjay Malhotra has stressed that the new neutral stance allows either further easing or a pause, depending on how global conditions evolve and how domestic inflation behaves. Should external headwinds fade and price pressures remain contained, additional rate cuts remain on the table; if inflationary risks resurface, policy can hold pairing an assertive rate cut with a neutral orientation, the RBI has attempted to engineer a soft-landing scenario: boost demand while inflation is subdued, yet keep enough policy flexibility to pivot if circumstances change. For businesses, this means a window of lower funding costs and stronger credit availability. For investors, it suggests a tactical opportunity in sectors most responsive to financing conditions, tempered by the need to stay agile as the data evolves. The central bank's message is clear: growth support continues, but only so long as price stability is not sacrificed.(The author is Senior Director, Head of Equities, Waterfield Advisors): Recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by experts are their own. These do not represent the views of the Economic Times)

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