Every adult should have a bank account by Jan 1 2016: RBI

Every adult should have a bank account by January 1, 2016, said Reserve Bank of India’s Nachiket Mor panel on financial inclusion on Tuesday.

Every resident should be issued an account at the time of receiving Aadhaar number by a bank, it added.

The panel also recommended unified Financial Redress Agency under Finance Ministry for customer grievances.

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The panel has recommended setting up a special category of lenders that would exclusively cater to small businesses and low income households to expand the number of customers with access to banking services.

These banks would focus on providing payment services and deposit products, with a maximum balance of Rs 50,000, to its target customers, it said.

The report also recommended setting up a category of wholesale banks in India that would provide funds to other banks and financial institutions that directly lend to low income households.

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The recommendations come before the RBI is due to issue new banking licenses as part of efforts to improve the financial reach in a country where 60 per cent of people do not have a bank account and nearly 90 per cent of small businesses have no formal financial access.

The recommendations were issued by a panel set up by RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan soon after he joined office in September and is headed by Mor.