RBI imposes penalties on four cooperative banks for non-compliance

The Reserve Bank on Tuesday said it has imposed penalties on four co-operative banks, including a Rs 112.50 lakh fine on Hyderabad-based Andhra Pradesh Mahesh Co-operative Urban Bank, for contravention of certain regulatory directions. A penalty of Rs 62.50 lakh has been imposed on The Ahmedabad Mercantile Co-operative Bank, Ahmedabad; Rs 37.50 lakh on SVC Co-operative Bank, Mumbai; and Rs 25 lakh on Saraswat Cooperative Bank, Mumbai.

The penalty on Andhra Pradesh Mahesh Co-operative Urban Bank was for non-compliance with directions issued by RBI contained in Master Directions on 'Interest Rate on Deposits' and 'Know Your Customer'. The Ahmedabad Mercantile Co-operative Bank has been penalised for violation of norms contained in Master Directions on 'Interest Rate on Deposits'.

As per the RBI, it imposed penalty on SVC Co-operative Bank for non-compliance with directions on 'Interest Rate on Deposits' and 'Frauds Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism'. Saraswat Cooperative Bank was penalised for non-compliance with directions on 'Interest Rate on Deposits' and 'Maintenance of Deposit Accounts'.

The penalties, the RBI said, have been imposed for based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance and are not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into by the banks with their customers.

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