The Reserve Bank of India, on Friday, imposed a monetary penalty on 12 banks for violating central bank rules in the case of Deccan Chronicle Holdings.
The central bank has imposed a penalty of Rs.40 lakh on ICICI Bank and Rs.15 lakh each on Axis Bank and IDBI Bank. A penalty of Rs.10 lakh each has been imposed on Andhra Bank, Canara Bank, Corporation Bank, IndusInd Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of Hyderabad and Yes Bank. HDFC Bank and Ratnakar Bank were fined Rs.5 lakh each.
The RBI said that it “came to the conclusion that some of the violations were substantiated and warranted imposition of monetary penalty.’’
The central bank carried out a scrutiny of the loan and current accounts of Deccan Chronicle Holdings in certain branches of these banks in late 2013.
PTI reports:
Based on the findings of the scrutiny, the RBI issued show-cause notices to these banks in March, to which the individual banks submitted written replies.
“After considering the facts of each case and the individual bank’s reply, as also, the personal submissions and the like by some of the banks...the RBI came to the conclusion that some of the violations were substantiated and warranted imposition of monetary penalty,” the RBI said in a release. The RBI, however, added that “this action is not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into between the concerned bank and the borrower.”