RBI's new body to look into PCA issues

The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Central Board on Monday decided to constitute a Board for Financial Supervision (BFS) of the Central bank to examine the framework for banks under Prompt Corrective Action (PCA).

The decision was taken after the RBI's Central Board meeting here on Monday, which discussed the Basel regulatory capital framework, a restructuring scheme for stressed Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), bank health under the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework and the Economic Capital Framework (ECF).

As per a press statement released by the Central bank after the meeting, the Board decided to constitute an expert committee to examine the ECF, the membership and terms of reference of which will be jointly determined by the Government of India and the RBI.

In another major decision, the Board also advised that the RBI should consider a scheme for the restructuring of stressed standard assets of MSME borrowers with aggregate credit facilities of up to Rs 250 million, subject to such conditions as are necessary for ensuring financial stability.

The Board, while deciding to retain the capital to risk asset ratio (CRAR) at 9 per cent, agreed to extend the transition period for implementing the last tranche of 0.625 per cent under the Capital Conservation Buffer (CCB), by one year, that is, up to March 31, 2020.

Amid some media reports stating that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Urjit Patel may consider resigning after an alleged rift with Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, the Finance Ministry on October 31 had clarified that the government holds "extensive consultations with the RBI from time to time."

The Finance Ministry, in its statement on that day, had said that autonomy of the Central bank, within the framework of the RBI Act, is an essential and accepted governance requirement. It further asserted that both the government and the Central bank, in their functioning, have to be guided by public interest and the requirements of the Indian economy.