Yes Bank put under moratorium, withdrawals capped at Rs 50,000

Private lender Yes Bank was placed under moratorium on Thursday, with the central capping depositor withdrawals at Rs 50,000 per account for a month and superseding the board with immediate effect.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) took the decision in consultation with the government to protect depositors' interest, reported news agency PTI.

"The Reserve Bank made all efforts to facilitate such a process and gave adequate opportunity to the bank’s management to draw up a credible revival plan, which did not materialise. In the meantime, the bank was facing regular outflow of liquidity," said a press release by the central bank.

The RBI removed Yes Bank's board and appointed Prashant Kumar, a former chief financial officer of the State Bank of India (SBI), as administrator.

Yes Bank has been grappling with mounting bad loans. Media reports said earlier on Thursday SBI along with some other financial institutions would bail out Yes Bank, with the government giving the go-ahead.

The plan would throw a lifeline to Yes Bank which has been struggling to raise capital since the middle of last year, as it has faced a surge in bad loans due to the nation’s shadow banking crisis. Moody’s Investors Service cut the bank’s credit ratings in December and in January said its “standalone viability is getting increasingly challenged by its slowness in raising new capital.”