Bimal Jalan Committee on New Bank Licences submitted its report to RBI

Bimal Jalan Committee on New Bank Licenses submitted its report to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 25 February 2014. The report contains names of entities eligible for bank licences.

The committee was constituted by RBI under the chairmanship of Bimal Jalan in October 2013. RBI had constituted the committee to examine the criteria, business plans and corporate governance practices of applicants applying for new bank Licenses.

Other members of the committee are former RBI Deputy Governor Usha Thorat, former Securities and Exchange Board of India Chairman C B Bhave and Nachiket M Mor, Director of the Central Board of Directors of the RBI.

The central bank issued guidelines for licensing of new banks on 22 February 2013.

There are around 25 players in the group to get bank license, among them primarily are Public sector units, India Post and IFCI and private sector Anil Ambani group and Aditya Birla group. Bajaj Finance, Muthoot Finance, Religare Enterprises and Shriram Capital have also applied.

In the past 20 years, the RBI has licensed 12 banks in the private sector in two phases. Ten banks were licensed on the basis of guidelines issued in January 1993.

Kotak Mahindra Bank and Yes Bank were the last two entities to get banking licenses from the RBI in 2003—04.

India has 27 public sector banks, 22 private sector banks and 56 regional rural banks.